A barcode-reading system

ABSTRACT

This patent specification describes an attachment for a mobile device. The attachment may have an attachment feature designed to be attached to a mobile device such as a smartphone, tablet, or smartphone/tablet with a camera. The attachment may also include an optics system and/or an illumination system that cooperates with the camera to facilitate the capture of decodable barcodes. The illumination system may include a targeting illumination system that facilitates proper positioning of the article and/or an exposure illumination system that helps illuminate the article during capture. The optics system may include a lens that modifies the depth of field and/or the size of the field of view of the camera, an aperture that helps define the field of view, a filter that prevents light of undesired wavelengths from reaching the camera, and/or a mirror that redirects the camera&#39;s optical pathway.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 14/581,821 filed Dec. 23, 2014, and entitled “BARCODE-READINGENHANCEMENT SYSTEM FOR A COMPUTING DEVICE THAT COMPRISES A CAMERA AND ANILLUMINATION SYSTEM” (Attorney's Docket No. 3271-2-075). Thisapplication is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 14/527,594, filed Oct. 29, 2014, and entitled “IMPROVING THEBARCODE-READING CAPABILITIES OF A PORTABLE, HAND-HELD COMPUTING DEVICETHAT COMPRISES A CAMERA” (Attorney's Docket No. 3271-2-068 which is aContinuation-in-Part of Ser. No. 13/644,356, filed Oct. 4, 2012, andentitled “HAND-HELD ELECTRONIC DEVICE ACCESSORY THAT FACILITATES RAPIDBATTERY REPLACEMENT” (Attorney's Docket No. 3271-2-046). Thisapplication is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 13/708,835, filed Dec. 7, 2012, and entitled “AN ATTACHMENTINCLUDING A MIRROR THAT CHANGES AN OPTICAL PATH OF CAMERA DEVICE”(Attorney's Docket No. 3271-2-047). All of the foregoing patentapplications along with: i) patent application Ser. No. 14/319,193,filed Jun. 30, 2014, and entitled “BARCODE READING SYSTEM INCLUDING ASLED READER AND RELAY APPLICATION” (Attorney's Docket No. 3271-2-066);ii) patent application Ser. No. 14/717,112, filed May 20, 2015 andentitled “BARCODE READER” (Attorney's Docket No. 3271-2-071); and iii)patent application Ser. No. 14/510,341, filed Oct. 9, 2014 and entitled“DIFFUSE BRIGHT FIELD ILLUMINATION SYSTEM FOR A BARCODE READER,”(Attorney's Docket No. 3271-2-053-1) are incorporated by reference asthough set forth herein in their entirety.

BACKGROUND

Smartphones (and other types of portable, hand-held computing devices,such as tablet computers) are in widespread use today, most often inconnection with entertainment, communications and office productivity.Most smartphones include a camera, and applications have been developedfor using the camera to read barcodes. In a typical known application animage feed from the camera is displayed on the display screen of thesmart phone. The user moves the smart phone with respect to the barcodeuntil the image of the barcode is centered on the display screen and theapplication decodes the barcode. A problem exists in that this processis too time consuming for most non-consumer barcode readingapplications. Further, the smart phone camera system and illuminationsystem are not optimized for reading a barcode and therefore using asmart phone for barcode reading is much less efficient than utilizing atraditional barcode reader.

SUMMARY

This patent specification relates generally to improving thebarcode-reading capabilities of a smartphone, a tablet computer, or anyother portable, hand-held computing device that comprises a camera(hereinafter, “mobile device”). More specifically, this patentspecification describes a barcode reading enhancement system for amobile device.

The mobile device may comprise a camera, a white light source forprojecting a field of illumination into a field of view of the camera, amemory and a processor for executing an operating system andapplications stored in the memory.

The barcode reading enhancement system may include a barcode readingenhancement accessory secured to the mobile device and a barcode readingapplication stored in the memory and executable by the processor of themobile device.

The barcode reading enhancement accessory secured to the mobile devicemay comprise at least one optic system. The at least one optic system:i) may be positioned within the field of illumination of the white lightsource for modifying the field of illumination; or ii) may be positionedwithin the field of view of the camera for modifying illuminationreflected from objects within the field of view of the camera.

The barcode reading application may include: i) an image capturefunction for controlling the white light source and the camera tocapture an image of a barcode, the image of the barcode being affectedby the at least one optic system; ii) a decoder function for receivingthe image of a barcode and generating decoded data representing dataencoded in the barcode; and iii) a relay function for sending thedecoded data to a remote server via a wireless connection establishedbetween the mobile device and a network.

The operating system may further include an application retrievalfunction. The application retrieval function may be the exclusive meansfor obtaining the barcode reading application and loading the barcodereading application to the memory. The application retrieval functionmay be configured to connect to a remote application server via anetwork and identify the mobile device to the application server. Theapplication retrieval function may be further configured to control auser interface of the mobile device to enable a user of the mobiledevice to identify the barcode reading application for downloading fromthe application server, download the barcode reading application fromthe application server and install the barcode reading application tothe memory for execution by the processor. The barcode readingapplication may be downloaded in a form of an install file, the installfile may be written to the memory, and an executable file may be builtfrom the install file and written to memory for execution by theprocessor.

The at least one optic system of the accessory may include atarget-generating structure for modifying the field of illumination ofthe white light source to emit a targeting pattern of illumination intothe field of view of the camera of the mobile device. Thetarget-generating structure may further include an illumination filterpositioned within the field of illumination of the white light sourcefor passing a portion of the spectrum of the illumination from the whitelight source. As such, the targeting pattern may be of a colorcorresponding to the portion of the spectrum passed by the illuminationfilter.

The illumination filter may be a narrow band filter for passing a narrowband of the spectrum (such as blue) and attenuating portions of thespectrum to each side of the narrow band.

The optic system may further include a camera filter positioned withinthe field of view of the camera for passing a portion of the spectrum ofillumination reflected from objects within the field of view of thecamera. The camera filter may attenuate the portion of the spectrumpassed by the illumination filter.

The target-generating structure may also comprise an optical componentfor narrowing a field of illumination of the white light source in atleast one direction.

The target-generating structure may narrow the field of illumination ofthe white light source to a divergence angle in the at least onedirection that is approximately the same as the divergence angle of thefield of view of the camera.

Further yet, the target-generating structure may further narrow thefield of illumination of the white light source in a second direction,orthogonal to the first direction, to a divergence angle approximatelythe same as the divergence angle of the field of view of the camera inthe second direction.

The image capture function may be further configured to disable anautofocus function of the camera.

Another aspect of the present specification provides a barcode readingsystem for a mobile device. The mobile device may comprise a camerahaving a field of view to a back side of the mobile device, a whitelight source for projecting a field of illumination towards the backside of the mobile device, a memory, and a processor.

The barcode reading system may comprise a barcode reading enhancementaccessory secured to the mobile device and a barcode reading applicationstored in the memory and executable by the processor of the mobiledevice.

The barcode reading enhancement accessory may comprise an optic systemwith a reflective surface for folding the field of view of the cameratowards a target area positioned at a top side of the mobile device anda reflective surface for folding the field of illumination of the whitelight source towards the target area.

The barcode reading application may include: i) an image capturefunction for controlling the white light source and the camera tocapture an image of a barcode in the target area; ii) a decoder functionfor receiving the image of the barcode and generating decoded datarepresenting data encoded in the barcode; and iii) a relay function forsending the decoded data to a remote server via a wireless connectionestablished between the mobile device and a network.

The optic system may include a target-generating structure for modifyingthe field of illumination of the white light source to emit a targetingpattern of illumination into the target area.

The optic system may further include an illumination filter positionedwithin the field of illumination of the white light source for passing aportion of the spectrum of the illumination from the white light source,the targeting pattern being of a color corresponding to the portion ofthe spectrum passed by the illumination filter.

The illumination filter may be a narrow band filter for passing a narrowband of the spectrum, such as blue light, and attenuating portions ofthe spectrum to each side of the narrow band.

The optic system may further include a camera filter positioned withinthe field of view of the camera for passing a portion of the spectrum ofillumination reflected from objects within the target area. The camerafilter may attenuate the portion of the spectrum passed by theillumination filter.

The target-generating structure may also comprise an optical componentfor narrowing a field of illumination of the white light source in atleast one direction. The target-generating structure may narrow thefield of illumination of the white light source to a divergence angle inthe at least one direction that is approximately the same as thedivergence angle of the field of view of the camera.

Further yet, the target-generating structure may further narrow thefield of illumination of the white light source in a second direction,orthogonal to the first direction, to a divergence angle approximatelythe same as the divergence angle of the field of view of the camera inthe second direction.

The image capture function may be further configured to disable anautofocus function of the camera.

Another aspect of the present specification comprises a method ofreading a barcode utilizing a mobile device. The mobile device maycomprise a camera, a white light source for projecting a field ofillumination into a field of view of the camera, a memory and aprocessor for executing applications including an operating systemstored in the memory.

The method may comprise: i) directing the operating system to obtain abarcode reading application from a remote application server and toinstall the barcode reading application in the memory for execution bythe processor; ii) securing a barcode reading enhancement accessory tothe mobile device; and iii) executing the barcode reading application bythe processor.

The barcode reading enhancement accessory may comprise at least oneoptic system, the at least one optic system: i) being positioned withinthe field of illumination of the white light source for modifying thefield of illumination; or ii) being positioned within the field of viewof the camera for modifying illumination reflected from objects withinthe field of view of the camera.

Execution of the barcode reading application may comprise: i) executionof an image capture function to control the white light source and thecamera to capture an image of a barcode, the image of the barcode beingaffected by the at least one optic system; ii) execution of a decoderfunction to generate decoded data representing data encoded in thebarcode; and iii) execution of a relay function to send the decoded datato a remote server via a wireless connection established between themobile device and a network.

The optic system may include a target-generating structure for modifyingthe field of illumination of the white light source to emit a targetingpattern of illumination into the target area.

The optic system may further include an illumination filter positionedwithin the field of illumination of the white light source for passing aportion of the spectrum of the illumination from the white light source,the targeting pattern being of a color corresponding to the portion ofthe spectrum passed by the illumination filter.

The illumination filter may be a narrow band filter passing a narrowband of the spectrum, such as blue light, and attenuating portions ofthe spectrum to each side of the narrow band.

The optic system may further include a camera filter positioned withinthe field of view of the camera for passing a portion of the spectrum ofillumination reflected from objects within the target area. The camerafilter may attenuate the portion of the spectrum passed by theillumination filter.

The target-generating structure may also comprise an optical componentfor narrowing a field of illumination of the white light source in atleast one direction. The target-generating structure may narrow thefield of illumination of the white light source to a divergence angle inthe at least one direction that is approximately the same as thedivergence angle of the field of view of the camera.

Further yet, the target-generating structure may further narrow thefield of illumination of the white light source in a second direction,orthogonal to the first direction, to a divergence angle approximatelythe same as the divergence angle of the field of view of the camera inthe second direction.

The image capture function may be further configured to disable anautofocus function of the camera.

Another aspect of the present specification comprises a method ofreading a barcode utilizing a mobile device. The mobile device maycomprise a camera having a field of view to a back side of the mobiledevice, a white light source for projecting a field of illuminationtowards the back side of the mobile device, a memory and a processor.

The method may comprise: i) directing the operating system to obtain abarcode reading application from a remote application server and toinstall the barcode reading application in memory for execution by theprocessor; ii) securing a barcode reading enhancement accessory to themobile device, and iii) executing the barcode reading application by theprocessor.

The barcode reading enhancement accessory may comprise an optic systemwith a reflective surface for folding the field of view of the cameratowards a target area positioned at a top side of the mobile device anda reflective surface for folding the field of illumination of the whitelight source towards the target area.

Execution of the barcode reading application may comprise: i) executionof an image capture function to control the white light source and thecamera to capture an image of a barcode in the target area; ii)execution of a decoder function to generate decoded data representingdata encoded in the barcode; and iii) execution of a relay function tosend the decoded data to a remote server via a wireless connectionestablished between the mobile device and a network.

The optic system may include a target-generating structure for modifyingthe field of illumination of the white light source to emit a targetingpattern of illumination into the target area.

The optic system may further include an illumination filter positionedwithin the field of illumination of the white light source for passing aportion of the spectrum of the illumination from the white light source,the targeting pattern being of a color corresponding to the portion ofthe spectrum passed by the illumination filter.

The illumination filter may be a narrow band filter for passing a narrowband of the spectrum, such as blue light, and attenuating portions ofthe spectrum to each side of the narrow band.

The optic system may further include a camera filter positioned withinthe field of view of the camera for passing a portion of the spectrum ofillumination reflected from objects within the target area. The camerafilter may attenuate the portion of the spectrum passed by theillumination filter.

The target-generating structure may also comprise an optical componentfor narrowing a field of illumination of the white light source in atleast one direction. The target-generating structure may narrow thefield of illumination of the white light source to a divergence angle inthe at least one direction that is approximately the same as thedivergence angle of the field of view of the camera.

Further yet, the target-generating structure may further narrow thefield of illumination of the white light source in a second direction,orthogonal to the first direction, to a divergence angle approximatelythe same as the divergence angle of the field of view of the camera inthe second direction.

The image capture function may be further configured to disable anautofocus function of the camera.

Another aspect of the present specification comprises a barcode readingsystem for a mobile device. The mobile device may comprise a camera forcapturing an image of a field of view, a microphone input connector, amemory and a processor for executing applications including an operatingsystem stored in the memory.

The barcode reading system may comprise a barcode reading enhancementaccessory secured to the mobile device and a barcode reading applicationstored in the memory and executable by the processor.

The barcode reading enhancement accessory may comprise: i) auser-activated barcode read control; and ii) circuitry for generating abarcode read signal on the microphone input connector of the mobiledevice in response to user activation of the barcode read control.

The barcode reading application may include an image capture and decodefunction for controlling the camera to capture an image of a barcodewithin the field of view and generating decoded data representing dataencoded in the barcode in response to the barcode reading enhancementaccessory generating the barcode read signal on the microphone inputconnector.

The microphone input connector may be embodied, for example, in afour-contact audio jack. The four-contact audio jack may comprise aground contact, a left speaker contact, a right speaker contact, and amicrophone contact. The microphone input connector may comprise themicrophone contact and the ground contact.

The barcode reading enhancement accessory may comprise a mating audiojack configured to be inserted into the four-contact audio jack of themobile device when the barcode reading enhancement accessory is securedto the mobile device. When the mating audio jack is inserted into thefour-contact audio jack, the mating audio jack comprises at least aground contact coupled to the ground contact of the four-contact audiojack and a microphone contact coupled to the microphone contact of thefour-contact audio jack. Generating the barcode read signal on themicrophone input connector may comprise at least one of: i) generating apotential differential between the ground contact and the microphonecontact; and/or ii) modifying a potential differential between theground contact and the microphone contact.

The user-activated barcode read control may be a mechanical controlwhich, when activated, moves a magnetic field with respect to aconductor to generate the potential differential between the groundcontact and the microphone contact.

The barcode reading enhancement accessory may comprise a gun-shaped casefor the mobile device that includes a handle extending downward from aback side of the mobile device, the back side of the mobile device beingparallel to an upward-facing face side of the mobile device, the faceside including a display screen.

The mechanical control may be embodied as a trigger switch positionedwhere the handle meets a portion of the case adjacent to the back sideof the mobile device.

The mobile device camera may have a field of view to the back side ofthe mobile device. The barcode reading enhancement accessory may furthercomprise an optic system with a reflective surface for folding the fieldof view of the camera towards a target area positioned at the top sideof the mobile device.

The mobile device may further include a white light source forprojecting a field of illumination towards the back side of the mobiledevice and the optic system may further include a reflective surface forfolding the field of illumination of the white light source towards thetarget area.

The optic system may include a target-generating structure for modifyingthe field of illumination of the white light source to emit a targetingpattern of illumination into the target area.

The optic system may further include an illumination filter positionedwithin the field of illumination of the white light source for passing aportion of the spectrum of the illumination from the white light source,the targeting pattern being of a color corresponding to the portion ofthe spectrum passed by the illumination filter.

The illumination filter may be a narrow band filter for passing a narrowband of the spectrum, such as blue light, and attenuating portions ofthe spectrum to each side of the narrow band.

The optic system may further include a camera filter positioned withinthe field of view of the camera for passing a portion of the spectrum ofillumination reflected from objects within the target area. The camerafilter may attenuate the portion of the spectrum passed by theillumination filter.

The target-generating structure may also comprise an optical componentfor narrowing a field of illumination of the white light source in atleast one direction. The target-generating structure may narrow thefield of illumination of the white light source to a divergence angle inthe at least one direction that is approximately the same as thedivergence angle of the field of view of the camera.

Further yet, the target-generating structure may further narrow thefield of illumination of the white light source in a second direction,orthogonal to the first direction, to a divergence angle approximatelythe same as the divergence angle of the field of view of the camera inthe second direction.

Another aspect of the present specification may comprise a method ofreading a barcode utilizing a mobile device. The mobile device maycomprise a camera for capturing an image of a field of view, amicrophone input connector, a memory, and a processor for executingapplications including an operating system stored in the memory.

The method may comprise: i) directing the operating system to obtain abarcode reading application from a remote application server and toinstall the barcode reading application in the memory for execution bythe processor; ii) securing a barcode reading enhancement accessory tothe mobile device; and iii) executing the barcode reading application bythe processor.

The barcode reading enhancement accessory may comprise: i) auser-activated barcode read control; and ii) circuitry for generating abarcode read signal on the microphone input connector of the mobiledevice in response to user activation of the barcode read control.

Executing the barcode reading application may capture an image of abarcode within the field of view of the camera and generate decoded datarepresenting data encoded in the barcode in response to the barcodereading enhancement accessory generating the barcode read signal on themicrophone input connector.

The microphone input connector may be embodied, for example, in afour-contact audio jack. The four-contact audio jack may comprise aground contact, a left speaker contact, a right speaker contact, and amicrophone contact. The microphone input connector may comprise themicrophone contact and the ground contact.

The barcode reading enhancement accessory may comprise a mating audiojack configured to be inserted into the four-contact audio jack of themobile device when the barcode reading enhancement accessory is securedto the mobile device. When the mating audio jack is inserted into thefour-contact audio jack, the mating audio jack comprises at least aground contact coupled to the ground contact of the four-contact audiojack and a microphone contact coupled to the microphone contact of thefour-contact audio jack. Generating the barcode read signal on themicrophone input connector may comprise at least one of: i) generating apotential differential between the ground contact and the microphonecontact; and ii) modifying a potential differential between the groundcontact and the microphone contact.

The user-activated barcode read control may be a mechanical controlwhich, when activated, moves a magnetic field with respect to aconductor to generate the potential differential between the groundcontact and the microphone contact.

The accessory may comprise a gun-shaped case for the mobile device thatincludes a handle extending downward from a back side of the mobiledevice, the back side of the mobile device being parallel to anupward-facing face side of the mobile device, the face side including adisplay screen.

The mechanical control may be embodied as a trigger switch positionedwhere the handle meets a portion of the case adjacent to the back sideof the mobile device.

The mobile device camera may have a field of view to the back side ofthe mobile device. The barcode reading enhancement accessory may furthercomprise an optic system with a reflective surface for folding the fieldof view of the camera towards a target area positioned to the top sideof the mobile device.

The mobile device may further include a white light source forprojecting a field of illumination towards the back side of the mobiledevice and the optic system may further include a reflective surface forfolding the field of illumination of the white light source towards thetarget area.

The optic system may include a target-generating structure for modifyingthe field of illumination of the white light source to emit a targetingpattern of illumination into the target area.

The optic system may further include an illumination filter positionedwithin the field of illumination of the white light source for passing aportion of the spectrum of the illumination from the white light source,the targeting pattern being of a color corresponding to the portion ofthe spectrum passed by the illumination filter.

The illumination filter may be a narrow band filter for passing a narrowband of the spectrum, such as blue light, and attenuating portions ofthe spectrum to each side of the narrow band.

The optic system may further include a camera filter positioned withinthe field of view of the camera for passing a portion of the spectrum ofillumination reflected from objects within the target area. The camerafilter may attenuate the portion of the spectrum passed by theillumination filter.

The target-generating structure may also comprise an optical componentfor narrowing a field of illumination of the white light source in atleast one direction. The target-generating structure may narrow thefield of illumination of the white light source to a divergence angle inthe at least one direction that is approximately the same as thedivergence angle of the field of view of the camera.

Further yet, the target-generating structure may further narrow thefield of illumination of the white light source in a second direction,orthogonal to the first direction, to a divergence angle approximatelythe same as the divergence angle of the field of view of the camera inthe second direction.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a barcode reading system.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram of an exemplary mobile device useful in abarcode reading system.

FIGS. 2B and 2C show a back side surface and a face surface of anexemplary mobile device that may be used in the barcode reading system.

FIG. 2D shows an exemplary TRRS connector.

FIG. 2E shows an image output format.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary method for obtaining an application fora mobile device useful in a barcode reading system.

FIGS. 4A and 4B illustrate an exemplary corner-positioned attachmentuseful in a barcode reading enhancement system.

FIGS. 5A-5C illustrate an exemplary encapsulating attachment useful in abarcode reading enhancement system.

FIGS. 6A and 6B illustrate an exemplary mounted attachment useful in abarcode reading enhancement system.

FIGS. 7A and 7B illustrate an exemplary target-generating mechanismuseful for implementing in an attachment in a barcode readingenhancement system.

FIGS. 8A-8D illustrate exemplary targeting patterns useful forimplementing an attachment of a barcode reading enhancement system.

FIG. 9 illustrates an exemplary exposure illumination system useful forimplementing in an attachment of a barcode reading enhancement system.

FIGS. 10A-10D illustrate exemplary supplementary optics useful forimplementing in an attachment of a barcode reading enhancement system.

FIGS. 11A and 11B illustrate an exemplary attachment for a barcodereading enhancement system which includes a target-generating mechanismand supplementary optics.

FIGS. 12A-12D illustrate an exemplary attachment for a barcode readingenhancement system which includes a target-generating mechanism.

FIG. 13 illustrates an exemplary attachment for a barcode readingenhancement system with a target-generating mechanism, an exposureillumination system and supplementary optics useful for implementing inan attachment of a barcode reading enhancement system.

FIG. 14 illustrates an exemplary attachment for a barcode readingenhancement system.

FIG. 15 illustrates an exemplary attachment for a barcode readingenhancement system which includes a target-generating mechanism andsupplementary optics.

FIG. 16 illustrates exemplary methods useful for an application for abarcode reading enhancement system.

FIG. 17 illustrates an exemplary state machine useful for an applicationfor a barcode reading enhancement system.

FIG. 18A illustrates exemplary autofocus options.

FIG. 18B illustrates exemplary resolution binning methods that can beused to reduce the resolution of a barcode image.

FIG. 19A depicts an exemplary method of target and exposure illuminationand shutter control in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 19B depicts another exemplary method of target and exposureillumination and shutter control in accordance with another embodiment.

FIG. 19C represents a filtering arrangement for the targetingillumination and the supplemental optics.

FIGS. 20A and 20B illustrate methods and systems useful for anapplication for a barcode reading enhancement system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary barcode reading system 10. The barcodereading system 10 comprises a network 12 which may interconnect one ormore mobile device(s) 18, an application server 16, a non-legacy system22, an intermediary device 24, and a legacy system 26. The barcodereading system 10 further includes one or more attachments 20 associatedwith at least one or more mobile devices 18.

The network 12 may comprise any combination of one or more networkswhich support Internet Protocol (IP) communication including local areanetworks, internet service provider (ISP) networks, and internetbackbone networks. Any of such one or more networks may be implementedutilizing an optical fiber, a co-axial cable, traditional conductors, orthey may be implemented wirelessly, as the physical communicationmedium. The wireless communication may utilize any permutation of: i) awide area network (WAN) communications protocol such as Wideband CodeDivision Multiple Access (WCDMA), High Speed Packet Access (HSPA),cdma2000, Long Term Evolution (LTE), and other similar long rangewireless communication protocols; and/or ii) a local area network (LAN)communication protocol such as Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11) or similar wirelesslocal area communication protocols.

Mobile Device

As used in this patent specification and the accompanying claims, theterm “mobile device” will be used to describe a portable, hand-heldcomputing device that comprises a camera. As indicated above, oneexample of a mobile device is a smartphone. Another example of a mobiledevice is a tablet computer. Yet another example is a hybridtablet/smartphone device, often nicknamed a “phablet.”

As used herein, the term “camera” refers to an apparatus for capturing adigital image of a field of view. A camera that is included in a mobiledevice (such as a smartphone, a tablet computer, etc.) typicallycomprises a lens and an image sensor.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram of an exemplary mobile device. FIGS. 2B and2C illustrate a back side surface and a face surface of an exemplarymobile device. Referring to FIGS. 2B and 2C, the mobile device 18 maycomprise a housing 28 with a plurality of external surfaces such as aface surface 72 and a back surface 74 which is generally parallel to theface surface 72 and separated from the face surface 72 by four (4) edgesurfaces (each orthogonal to, and extending about the perimeter of, boththe face surface 72 and the back surface 74 including a bottom edge 76,a top edge 78 (which is parallel to the bottom edge surface 76), a rightedge 80 and a left edge 82 (which is parallel to the right edge 80).

The face surface 72 may include a user interface such as a capacitivemulti-touch display screen (with a glass cover) 66 (shown in FIG. 2A)which may define the face surface 72 of the housing 28. The face surface72 may also include a front-facing camera 79 with a field of viewextending from the face surface 72—opposite (180 degrees opposed) to thefield of view of the camera 36.

Referring to FIG. 2C, the nomenclature bottom edge 76, top edge 78,right edge 80, and left edge 82 have been chosen because they correspondto the bottom, top, right, and left sides of the display screen 66 ofthe face surface when the display screen 66 is operated in a portraitmode. Each of the right edge 80 and the left edge 82 may be of equallength and longer than each of the bottom edge 76 and the top edge 78(which may also be of equal length).

Referring to FIG. 2A, the mobile device 18 may include a processor 44and memory 46. The processor 44 may be embodied as a combination of oneor more microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors(DSP) and, when operating, may execute instructions (in the form of anoperating system and/or applications) stored in the memory 46. Thememory 46 may be any component capable of storing electronicinformation, including an operating system and/or applicationinstructions executable by the processor 44, and may be embodied asread-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic diskstorage media, optical storage media, flash memory devices in RAM,on-board memory included with the processor 44, erasable programmableread-only memory (EPROM) memory, electrically erasable programmableread-only memory (EEPROM) memory, registers, etc.

The memory 46 may include an operating system 48, one or moreapplications 50 a, 50 b, and a data buffer including an image databuffer 89. In operation, the processor 44 may execute instructionsembodied in the operating system 48 and each of the applications 50 a,50 b. Hardware circuits 90 interface the processor 44 with peripheralsystems including, but not limited to, a (multi-touch) display screen66, a wireless communication system 52, a hardwired point-to-pointcommunication system 60, an audio interface 68, a camera assembly 36,and a white light source 84 (e.g., an illuminator or a flash forutilizing the camera assembly 36 for photography).

The wireless communication system 52 may comprise any permutation of: i)a wide area network (WAN) communications module 54 which may utilizeWideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), High Speed Packet Access(HSPA), cdma2000, Long Term Evolution (LTE), and other similarlong-range wireless communication protocols for communication withapplicable network infrastructure components 14 a-14 c of the network 12(shown in FIG. 1); ii) a local area network (LAN) communications module56 which may utilize Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11) or similar wireless local areacommunication protocols for communication with applicable networkinfrastructure components 14 of the network 12; and/or iii) a wirelesspoint-to-point communication interface 58 for forming a wirelesspoint-to-point communication link with another compatible systemutilizing Bluetooth® or similar wireless point-to-point communicationprotocols.

The hardwired point-to-point communication interface 60 may utilizeUniversal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter (UART), Universal Serial Bus(USB), and similar communication protocols for communicating with acompatible system connected to a data connector 64 b (which may be apart of a single power/data connector 64 such as a USB connector or anApple® Lightening Connector®.

The audio interface 68 may include circuits for generating analog audiosignals on a speaker connector 34 a and receiving analog microphoneinput on a microphone connector 34 b. The speaker connector 34 a and themicrophone connector 34 b may be embodied as a single TRRS connectortypically referred to as a head-set connector 34. FIG. 2D shows anexemplary TRRS connector. The TRRS connector includes four contacts, tipcontact 71 a, ring 1 contact 71 b, ring 2 contact 71 c, and sleevecontact 71 d, along the side of recesses 69 a, 69 b, 69 c, 69 d whichcontact the corresponding contacts of the TRRS connector of an audiojack when inserted within the recess. Typically the contacts are forleft audio, right audio, microphone, and ground in the order of tip,ring 1, ring 2, and sleeve. A microphone input signal may be a potentialdifference between the ground contact (sleeve) and the microphonecontact (ring 2) generated by a microphone coupled thereto.

Referring to FIG. 2A, the camera assembly 36 may include a (color) photosensor 42 (i.e., an array of image sensors) positioned parallel to eachof the face surface 72 and the back surface 74 and a lens assembly 40with an optical axis 39 orthogonal to the photo sensor 42 and defining acenter line of a camera field of view 38 extending outward from the backsurface 74 of the mobile device 18. The photo sensor 42 may include oneor more sensors such as charge-coupled display (CCD) sensors,complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) sensors, or the like.

The lens assembly 40 may receive light reflected from objects within thecamera field of view 38. The camera field of view 38 may have a cameraangular size 41 which may be the angle at which the camera field of view38 spreads with respect to distance from the lens assembly 40. The lensassembly 40 may have a camera aperture size measured as an f-numberwhich is the ratio of the focal length of the lens assembly 40 to thediameter of the entrance pupil (i.e., the lens aperture (an aperturestop or an inherent aperture of the lens component defining theaperture) as viewed through the front of the lens assembly 40).

The camera assembly 36 may further include an auto zoom module 96 and/oran autofocus module 98 which may serve to control an optical zoomsetting and/or autofocus setting of the camera. Autofocus and auto zoommay be controlled by moving the position of at least one of the lensesmaking up the lens assembly 40 with respect to each other (or withrespect to the photo sensor 42) and/or altering the curvature of atleast one of the lenses making up the lens assembly 40.

In general, the camera lens assembly 40 and the autofocus module 98(which compensates for limited depth of field at larger apertures) andthe auto zoom module 96 (which adjusts the angular size 41 and imagemagnification) are designed and/or optimized for general purposephotography, and may therefore not be ideal for barcode capture and/ordecoding. More specifically, in a barcode reading application anoperator expects to read and decode a barcode in less than 300 ms. Thefocus and zoom adjustment process requires significantly more time andtherefore, if used, it would significantly delay the response time in abarcode reading application.

If the camera lens assembly 40 is fixed (e.g. not adjusted for focus andzoom) at any particular focus and/or zoom setting for the lens assembly40, the combination of the camera angular size 41 and the cameraaperture size affect the camera depth of field (e.g. the range ofdistances at which a barcode of a particular modular size is imaged ontothe photo sensor with sufficient sharpness for decoding). The angularsize 41 affects the minimum distance at which a barcode of a certainoverall size can be imaged onto the photo sensor 42.

The photo sensor 42 may be coupled to system-on-chip circuits 92 whichinclude an output module 91 and an auto-white balance module 93. In oneembodiment, the output module 91 controls the operation of the photosensor 42 (e.g., exposer, gain, and coupling of pixels toanalog-to-digital (A/D) converters for image read out), formats thedigital intensity values of each pixel of the photo sensor 42 for colorimage output, and makes the color image output available for writing tothe image data buffer 89.

In another embodiment, the output module 91 may perform image processingon images captured by the photo sensor 42. Control of the photo sensor42 and image pre-processing are described in more detail in U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/717,112. The auto-white balance module 93 mayperform auto-white balance algorithms on the captured image to enhancethe quality of color photographs captured by the photo sensor 42 underdifferent illumination conditions. The digital image output 162 (whichmay be the color image or a result of processing the image one or moretimes in accordance with the teachings of the Ser. No. 14/717,112application) may be written to the image data buffer 89. The mobiledevice 18 may include a direct memory access (DMA) system 86 which maybe a part of the processor 44. DMA 86 provides for direct writing of thedigital image output 162 from the camera assembly 36 to the image databuffer 89.

FIG. 2E shows the image output format. The image output format from thephoto sensor 42 (or from the output module 91 prior to any imageprocessing as described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/717,112)may be in either R.G.B. format 164 and/or Y.U.V format 166. The Y.U.V.format 166 may include, for each pixel, a luminous intensity 168indicative of the overall intensity of light received by the pixel, afirst chromatic 170 representative of a first dimension of color of thelight of the pixel, and a second chromatic 172 representative of asecond dimension of color of the light of the pixel. The R.G.B. format164 may include, for each pixel, a red intensity 174 indicating theintensity of red light received by the pixel, a green intensity 176indicating the intensity of green light received by the pixel, and ablue intensity 178 indicating the intensity of blue light received bythe pixel.

Returning to FIG. 2A, the mobile device 18 may further include a battery62 and power circuits 63. In general the power circuits 63 controlcharging of the battery 62 from power received from an external powersource via the power connector 64 a and providing operating power at thevoltage and current drawing requirements of the various components ofthe mobile device 18 from the power received from the battery 62 or theexternal power source (when connected to the external power source).

Referring to FIG. 2A in conjunction with FIG. 1, in an exemplaryembodiment, the operating system 48 may include an application retrievalsystem 49 which obtains the applications 50 a, 50 b from the applicationserver 16.

In an exemplary embodiment, the operation of the application retrievalsystem 49 to obtain applications 50 a, 50 b from the application server16 may be the exclusive means for loading, writing, or otherwise placingthe applications 50 a, 50 b into the memory 46. The operating system 48may be configured to block or prevent loading of an application 50 tomemory by any means other than the operation of the applicationretrieval system 49 in a manner such that the application 50 may beretrieved exclusively form the application server 16.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of an exemplary process for the operation ofthe application retrieval system 49. Step 180 represents the applicationretrieval system 49 establishing a secure connection to the applicationserver 16 over the network 12 and authenticating the mobile device 18 tothe application server 16.

Step 182 represents rendering, on the display screen 66, identificationof applications which are available to the mobile device 18 fordownloading and step 184 represents obtaining user selection of anapplication to download.

Step 186 represents obtaining an application file package (i.e., aninstall package) from the application server 16 and temporarily storingthe application file package in the memory 46.

Step 188 represents installing the application which includes un-packingthe install package and writing an executable application 50 to thememory 46.

Accessory

As used herein, the terms “attachment” and “accessory” are usedsynonymously and interchangeably, and may refer to an apparatusattached, coupled, or secured to a mobile device. An attachment for amobile device may include just a single component that improves thebarcode reading capabilities of the mobile device. Alternatively, anattachment may include multiple components that improve the barcodereading capabilities of the mobile device. In addition, an attachmentfor a mobile device may provide additional functionality that isunrelated to improving the barcode reading capabilities of the mobiledevice. In some embodiments, the attachment improves the ability of themobile device to read a barcode utilizing the camera assembly and/or theflash/torch illumination system of the mobile device. In someembodiments, the attachment may include a supplemental camera systemand/or one or more supplemental illumination systems which providebarcode reading capability for the mobile device.

An attachment for a mobile device may cover a relatively small portionof the mobile device. Alternatively, an attachment for a mobile devicemay be a protective case that covers a substantial portion of the mobiledevice. Attachments may be designed for attachment to mobile devices ina wide variety of ways, including but not limited to a corner-positionedattachment, an encapsulating attachment, and a mounting attachment.These attachment modes will be explained in detail below.

FIGS. 4A and 4B depict examples of a corner-positioned attachment thatcovers a relatively small portion of the mobile device 18. Acorner-positioned attachment may cover one or more (but not all) cornersof a mobile device.

The corner-positioned attachment 100 a shown in FIG. 4A secures to, andcovers, a single corner of a mobile device 18. More specifically, thecorner-positioned attachment 100 a may have an interior back surface102, an interior front surface 104, an interior top surface 106, and aninterior side surface 108. When installed on the corner of the mobiledevice 18: i) the interior back surface 102 faces, and abuts, the backsurface 74 of the mobile device 18; ii) the interior front surface 104faces, and abuts, the face surface 72 of the mobile device 18; iii) theinterior top surface 106 faces, and abuts, the top edge 78 of the mobiledevice 18; and iv) the interior side surface 108 faces, and abuts, theright edge 80 of the mobile device 18. The distance between the interiorback surface 102 and the interior front surface 104 may be sufficientlylarge to permit the corner-positioned attachment 100 a to be insertedonto the corner of the mobile device 18 without excessive difficulty,but also small enough that, once installed, the corner-positionedattachment 100 a will not slide free of the mobile device 18 due tofriction fit between: i) the interior back surface 102 and the backsurface 74; and ii) the interior front surface 104 and the face surface72. Because the corner-positioned attachment 100 a covers a singlecorner of the mobile device 18, the attachment 100 a may be installed onthe mobile device 18 by sliding the attachment 100 a along the top edge78 (e.g. the interior top surface 106 in contact with the top edge 78)until the interior side surface 108 abuts the right edge 80 of themobile device. FIG. 4A shows, as an example, a corner-positionedattachment covering the right top corner of the mobile device 18.However, the corner-positioned attachment may cover the left top corneror any other corner of the mobile device 18.

The corner-positioned attachment 100 b secures to, and covers, two topcorners of the mobile device 18 as well as the entire top edge 78. Morespecifically, the corner-positioned attachment 100 b may have aninterior back surface 102, an interior front surface 104, an interiortop surface 106, and two interior side surfaces 108 a and 108 b. Wheninstalled on the corner of the mobile device 18: i) the interior backsurface 102 faces, and abuts, the back surface 74 of the mobile device18; ii) the interior front surface 104 faces, and abuts, the facesurface 72 of the mobile device 18; iii) the interior top surface 106faces, and abuts, the top edge 78 of the mobile device 18; and iv) theinterior side surfaces 108 a and 108 b face, and abut, the right edge 80and the left edge 82 of the mobile device 18, respectively.

The distance between the interior back surface 102 and the interiorfront surface 104 may be sufficiently large to permit thecorner-positioned attachment 100 a to be inserted onto the corner of themobile device 18 without excessive difficulty, but also small enoughthat, once installed, the corner-positioned attachment 100 b will notslide free of the mobile device 18 due to friction fit between: i) theinterior back surface 102 and the back surface 74, and ii) the interiorfront surface 104 and the face surface 72.

Additionally, or alternatively, the distance between the interior sidesurface 108 a and the interior side surface 108 b may be sufficientlylarge to permit the corner-positioned attachment 100 b to be insertedonto the corner of the mobile device 18 without excessive difficulty,but also small enough that, once installed, the corner-positionedattachment 100 b will not slide free of the mobile device 18 due tofriction fit between: i) the interior side surface 108 a and the rightedge 80, and ii) the interior side surface 108 b and the left edge 82.

Because the corner-positioned attachment 100 b covers two corners of themobile device 18, the attachment 100 b may be installed on the mobiledevice 18 by sliding the attachment 100 b along each of the left edge 82and the right edge 80 (e.g. interior side surface 108 a in contact withthe right edge 80, the interior side surface 108 b in contact with theleft edge 82, the interior back surface 102 in contact with the backsurface 74, and the interior front surface 104 in contact with the facesurface 72) until the interior top surface 106 abuts the top edge 78 ofthe mobile device 18.

With respect to either attachment 100 a or 100 b (or any type ofcorner-positioned attachment), as an alternative to frictionalengagement between the attachment 100 a, 100 b and the mobile device 18,the attachment 100 a, 100 b may be secured to the mobile device 18through the use of various other attachment methods. Such attachmentmethods include, but are not limited to, mechanical fasteners,adhesives, and the like.

Encapsulating attachments may cover substantially the entirety of theback surface 74 of the mobile device 18 and may further coversubstantially the entirety of one or more of the edges 76, 78, 80, and82 of the mobile device 18. An encapsulating attachment i) may cover aperimeter edge of the face surface 72 (but does not cover the centralportion of the face surface 72) or ii) may cover substantially theentire face surface 72 but include a transparent central portion, ineach case to enable viewing of, and access to, the display screen 66 andtouch panel of the mobile device 18. An encapsulating attachment mayfurther exclude covering interface elements of the mobile device 18,such as buttons, electrical interfaces, infrared interfaces, and thelike.

FIG. 5A depicts an exemplary encapsulating attachment 110 a which coverssubstantially the entire back surface 74 and each of the right edge 80and the left edge 82 of the mobile device 18 while covering portions ofthe top edge 78 and the bottom edge 76 near the right edge 80 and leftedge 82 (e.g. the corners of the mobile device 18).

In more detail, the encapsulating attachment 110 a may include: i) aninterior back surface 112 which faces, and abuts, the back surface 74 ofthe mobile device 18; ii) interior side surfaces 114 a and 114 b whichface, and abut, the right edge 80 and the left edge 82 of the mobiledevice 18, respectively; iii) an interior top surface 118 which faces,and abuts, the top edge 78 of the mobile device 18 (at the corners); andiv) an interior bottom surface 120 which faces, and abuts, the bottomedge 76 of the mobile device 18 (at the corners). The encapsulatingattachment 110 a may also include an interior top surface 116 whichfaces, and abuts, at least a portion of the periphery of the facesurface 72 of the mobile device 18.

For installation of the encapsulating attachment 110 a onto the mobiledevice 18, the walls of the encapsulating attachment 110 forming theinterior side surfaces 114 a and 114 b may be sufficiently flexible suchthat, with pressure, the walls separate as the mobile device 18 ispressed towards the interior back surface 112, and the portions of thewalls which form the interior front surface 116 pass along the rightedge 80 and the left edge 82 of the mobile device 18, and come to restabutting the periphery of the face surface 72 when the back surface 74is in contact with the interior back surface 112.

The encapsulating attachment 110 a, or more specifically a back sideforming the interior back surface 112, may further include a cameraaperture through which the camera assembly (not shown) of the mobiledevice 18 has the field of view 38 to the back surface 74 of the mobiledevice 18.

FIG. 5B depicts another example of an encapsulating attachment 100 b.The encapsulating attachment 100 b comprises a top corner-positionedattachment 101 a (similar to 100 b) which covers the top two corners ofthe mobile device 18 and a bottom corner-positioned attachment 101 bwhich covers the bottom two corners of mobile device 18. The twocorner-positioned attachments 101 a and 101 b, when installed, mate toencapsulate the mobile device 18. It should be appreciated that theinterior front surface of each of the attachments 110 b (e.g. each ofthe mating top and bottom corner-positioned attachments) covers a smallportion of the periphery of the face surface 72 of the mobile device 18such that an operator may access the display screen 66 and touch panelwhen the mobile device 18 is encapsulated within the attachment 110 b.

It should be appreciated that the encapsulating attachments 110 a and110 b shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B are examples of encapsulatingattachments. Encapsulating attachments may encompass clam-shell types ofattachments, an example of which is depicted in FIG. 5C. The attachment100 c may include an upper portion 240 and a lower portion 242 which arecoupled together by a hinge 244 which, when closed (the position shownin FIG. 5C), secures the upper portion 240 to the lower portion 242 at apart line 250 and forms a cavity 246 which may encapsulate the mobiledevice (not shown). The display of the mobile device may be accessedthrough a face aperture (which may be open or may include a capacitivemembrane which is positioned over a touch panel/display of the mobiledevice). The attachment 100 c may also include a cavity 248 within thelower portion 242 which, as will be discussed in more detail, mayinclude mechanical and electrical components of the attachment 100 c.The attachment 100 c may also include, secured to the lower portion 242and located within the cavity 246, a power/data connector 254 configuredto mate with the power/data connector 64 of the mobile device 18 whenthe mobile device 18 is positioned within the cavity 246.

Mounted attachments generally are attachments that are secured to oneface and/or one edge of a mobile device 18. Mounted attachments may notcover any corner of the mobile device, and may not encapsulate themobile device 18.

FIGS. 6A and 6B depict exemplary mounted attachments 122 a, 122 b whichare secured to the back surface 74 of the mobile device 18. In FIG. 6A,the mounted attachment 122 a may be a barrel shape and include acylindrical male engagement surface 124 which inserts into a cylindricalrecess 126 within the back surface 74 of the mobile device 18 andengages a periphery engagement surface 128 of the cylindrical recess 126for mounting. The engagement between the engagement surface 124 and theengagement surface 128 may be, for example, by threading, bayonetfitting, or any other mounting structure which may utilize rotationalmovement between the mounted attachment 122 a and the mobile device 18for securing the mounted attachment 122 a to, and releasing the mountedattachment 122 a from, the mobile device 18.

In FIG. 6B the mounted attachment 122 b may be a non-cylindrical shapeand may be secured into a recess 130 within the back surface 74 of themobile device 18. The recess 130 may be of the same shape as the mountedattachment 122 b and may include an engagement lip or cavity 132 aroundat least a portion of the periphery of the recess 130 such thatengagement clips 134 around the periphery of the mounted attachment 122b may secure the mounted attachment 122 b within the recess 130.

In addition to the foregoing examples of corner-mounted attachments,encapsulating attachments, and mounted attachments, the barcode readingenhancement systems and other features embodied in, or related to,attachments as described herein may utilize any (or multiple) attachmentstructure or means for attaching to the corresponding mobile deviceincluding, but not limited to: i) for attachments that cover someportion of the mobile device from two or more sides (e.g.corner-positioned attachments and encapsulating attachments), use of africtional interface such as a modest interference fit between theinterior dimension of the attachment and the exterior dimension of theportion of the mobile device that receives the attachment; ii) forencapsulating attachments, a wide variety of attachment features inknown examples of cases, covers, and other protectors for mobiledevices; and iii) for attachments that are attached to only one side ofthe mobile device attachment, features such as threaded fasteners,adhesives, snap-in interfaces, and the like.

The attachments described herein may include target-generatingmechanisms as a component of the barcode reading enhancement system fora mobile device. FIG. 7A depicts a side cutaway view of an examplecorner- or edge-mounted attachment (shown as attachment 100 a covering asingle edge of the mobile device 18 as an example) that includes atarget-generating mechanism 136 (i.e., a targeting structure). Thetarget-generating mechanism 136 projects a targeting beam 138 into atarget area 140 (corresponding to a central portion of a field of view38 of the camera assembly 36 of the mobile device 18) and may beutilized to facilitate rapid and optimal positioning of a barcode 142within the field of view 38 of the mobile device 18. The targeting beam138 is projected at an acute angle 144 with respect to the back surface74 of the mobile device 18 in a first direction such that the targetingbeam 138 intersects the central portion of the field of view 38 at adistance from the camera assembly 36 that is useful for barcode reading.The distance useful for barcode reading means that a barcode 142 withinthe field of view 38 would be imaged by the lens assembly 40 withsufficient sharpness (focus) and resolution (size) to enable reading ofthe barcode 142. This targeting beam 138 is especially useful when themobile device 18 does not have a display, or the display is dimmed orturned off to conserve battery power.

FIG. 7B shows (as a top view, which may be orthogonal to the side viewdepicted in FIG. 7A) an example of a target-generating mechanism. Thetarget-generating mechanism may include multiple targeting structures136 a and 136 b. The targeting structures 136 a and 136 b may projectnon-parallel targeting beams 138 a and 138 b of a distinct illuminationpattern, each at an acute angle with respect to the back surface 74 ofthe mobile device 18 in a second direction orthogonal to the firstdirection and each of which form a point or a pattern within the targetarea 140. The targeting structures 136 a and 136 b may be configured sothat (1) at a distance useful for barcode reading (i.e. the optimaldistance from the camera assembly 36), the targeting beams 138 a and 138b converge so that the projected patterns and/or points meet at thecenter of the camera's field of view 38, and (2) at any distance fromthe camera assembly 36 other than the optimal distance, the projectedpatterns and/or points are spaced apart. Thus, when the mobile device 18is being used to read a barcode 142, the user may move the mobile device18 until the projected patterns and/or points meet, indicating that themobile device 18 is at the optimal distance from the barcode 142 andthat the barcode 142 is positioned within the center of the camera'sfield of view 38.

The target-generating mechanism depicted in FIG. 7B may include a lightsource 146 a, 146 b and permutations of any of a prism 148 a, 148 b; acollimating lens 150 a, 150 b; and a pattern generating surface 152 a,152 b such as an interference pattern generating element; a diffractivepattern generating element, such as a holographic element that mayinclude one or more diffractive gratings; or a Fresnel-type patterngenerating element that has been fabricated with the desired targetingbeam pattern.

The light source 146 a, 146 b may be laser diodes, light-emitting diodes(LEDs), etc. embodied in the attachment or within the mobile device 18.The targeting beams 138 a, 138 b may be generated by shaping theillumination from the white light source of the mobile device by theapplicable permutations of the prism 148 a, 148 b, a collimating lens150 a, 150 b, and a pattern generating surface 152 a, 152 b.

Although FIGS. 7A and 7B depict the target-generating mechanism embodiedin a corner- or edge-mounted attachment 100 a, the target-generatingmechanism may be secured to the mobile device 18 by other meansincluding, but not limited to, embodying the target-generating mechanism136 into an encapsulating attachment as depicted in FIG. 5A in alignmentwith a white light source 84 of the mobile device such that the whitelight source 84 of the mobile device may be used as the light source 146of the target-generating mechanism 136.

In this application, a “distinct illumination pattern” is anillumination pattern produced by light that is focused to providerelatively crisp lines or other shapes. Thus, the illumination producedby a laser is an example of light that would typically produce adistinct illumination pattern. By contrast, a “diffuse illuminationpattern” is an illumination pattern produced by light that is notfocused at any particular location, but rather emanating into a broadarea. Thus, the illumination produced by a typical light bulb is anexample of light that would typically produce a diffuse illuminationpattern.

FIGS. 8A-8D illustrate various targeting patterns (distinct illuminationpatterns) that may be projected by the targeting structures 136 into thetarget area 140. FIG. 8A shows an example of a targeting pattern 224that may be projected by the targeting structure 136. The targetingpattern 224 includes a circle 226 with a dot 228 in the center. Onetargeting structure (136 a for example) may generate the circle 226,while the other targeting structure (136 b for example) may generate thedot 228. The targeting structures 136 a, 136 b may be configured so thatwhen the mobile device 18 is at an optimal distance from the barcode142, the dot 228 is substantially in the center of the circle 226 toform the depicted targeting pattern 224.

FIG. 8B shows another example of a targeting pattern 290 that may beprojected by the targeting structures 136. The targeting pattern 290includes a cross comprising a horizontal bar 292 and a vertical bar 294.One targeting structure (136 a for example) may generate the horizontalbar 292, while the other targeting structure (136 b for example) maygenerate the vertical bar 294. The targeting structures 136 a, 136 b maybe configured so that when the mobile device 18 is at an optimaldistance from the barcode 142, the horizontal bar 292 and the verticalbar 294 intersect each other within the target area 140 to form thedepicted targeting pattern 290.

FIG. 8C shows another example of a targeting pattern 296 that may beprojected by the targeting structures 136. The targeting pattern 296includes a circle 298 comprising an X pattern 300 within the circle 298.One targeting structure (136 a for example) may generate the circle 298,while the other targeting structure (136 b for example) may generate theX pattern 300. The targeting structures 136 a, 136 b may be configuredso that when the mobile device 18 is at an optimal distance from thebarcode 142, the circle 298 and the X pattern 300 may intersect eachother to form the depicted targeting pattern 296.

FIG. 8D shows another example of a targeting pattern 302 generated bythe targeting structures 136. The targeting pattern 302 may include anintense illumination in a pattern of one or more quadrilaterals such asa rectangular or square quadrilateral or bar 304 which is/are bounded bya distinct drop in intensity (e.g. a sharp contrast at the edges of therectangular or square quadrilateral 304). More specifically, the areaaround the perimeter of the illuminated rectangular or squarequadrilateral 304 may be illuminated (if at all) at an intensity muchless than the intensity of illumination within the rectangular or squarequadrilateral 304.

The illuminated rectangular or square quadrilateral 304 may be, forexample, illuminated by LEDs projecting (or appearing) blue or white andin the shape of the rectangular or square quadrilateral 304. The lengthof the rectangular or square quadrilateral 304 in a first direction(direction 308) may approximately coincide with the width of the fieldof view of the camera assembly 36 of the mobile device 18 (or the widthof the system field of view if the attachment alters the field of viewof the camera assembly 36) and the length of the rectangular or squarequadrilateral 304 in a second direction (direction 306), orthogonal tothe first direction 308, may approximately coincide with the height ofthe field of view of the camera assembly 36 of the mobile device 18 (orthe height of the system field of view if the attachment alters thefield of view of the camera assembly 36) and, in each case, may bewithin a central portion of the field of view of the camera assembly 36of the mobile device 18 as depicted in FIG. 5A.

Stated another way, the angle at which the illumination diverges fromthe target-generating mechanism 136 in the first direction 308 may beapproximately the same angle as the field of view of the camera assembly36 in the first direction 308 (or the same angle as the system field ofview if the attachment alters the field of view of the camera assembly36). Similarly, the angle at which the illumination diverges from thetarget-generating mechanism 136 in the second direction 306 may beapproximately the same angle as the field of view of the camera assembly36 in the second direction 306 (or the same angle as the system field ofview if the attachment alters the field of view of the camera assembly36). As such, the targeting pattern 304 not only provides the user withan indication of the field of view of the camera assembly 36 (or thesystem field of view), in both the first direction 308 and the seconddirection 306, but the targeting pattern 304 also illuminatessubstantially all of the field of view in one or both of the firstdirection and the second direction with an intensity of illuminationthat does not significantly vary within the targeting pattern 304 butdrops significantly at the perimeter of the targeting pattern 304.

As discussed, the target-generating mechanism 136 may include its ownlight source 146 a, 146 b (as shown in FIG. 7B) and collimateillumination therefrom to produce the applicable distinct targetingpattern. The illumination source may be of a particular wavelength (e.g.red or blue light) or may be white illumination (broad spectrum) and mayinclude a filter 214 a, 214 b (which will be explained in detail withreference to FIG. 9) to pass only the particular wavelength used togenerate the distinct targeting pattern by attenuating otherwavelengths.

Alternatively, the target-generating mechanism 136 may culminate andotherwise shape illumination from the white light source 84 of themobile device 18 utilizing a collimating lens and/or a patterngenerating surface in both the first direction and the second directionto project the applicable targeting pattern into the target area 140. Insuch a case, as shown in FIG. 9, the target-generating mechanism 136 mayinclude filters (214 a, 214 b) which pass a narrow band of the visibleillumination spectrum, such as red illumination or blue illumination,such that the white illumination (broad spectrum) from the mobile device18 is filtered and the targeting pattern generated by the combination ofthe white illumination source and the filter is a specific color, suchas blue or red.

The attachments described herein may include supplementary exposureillumination systems as a component of the barcode reading enhancementsystem for a mobile device. More specifically, the supplementaryexposure illumination systems may include one or more elements whichproject (or alter the projection of) diffuse illumination into thetarget area 140 in such a manner that illumination reflected from abarcode 142 and imaged onto the photo sensor 42 produces imagecharacteristics that improve decodability of the image. Imagecharacteristics which improve decodability of the image include: i)increased contrast between illumination reflected from bars (firstmodules in a 2D code) versus illumination reflected from spaces (secondmodules in a 2D code), and ii) even contrast (e.g. no hot spots, deadzones, or other significant contrast difference) of illuminationreflected from bars (or first modules) across the entire barcode 142 andsimilarly even contrast of illumination reflected from spaces (or secondmodules) across the entire barcode 142.

FIG. 9 depicts an example of a mobile device attachment (shown as across section of an encapsulating attachment 110) that includesillumination elements for optimizing illumination for barcode reading.The mobile device 18 includes a white light source 84. The attachment110 may include a light pipe 210 that redirects white illumination 212provided by the white light source 84 of the mobile device 18. Morespecifically, utilizing total internal reflection, the light pile 210propagates the white illumination 212 in a direction parallel to theback surface 74 of the mobile device 18 towards one or more illuminationemanating structures 218 a, 218 b which are displaced from the whitelight source 84 within the plane defined by the back surface 74 of themobile device 18.

Each illumination emanating structure 218 a, 218 b redirects at least aportion of the white illumination 212 propagating through the light pipe210 towards a barcode 142 present within the target area 140 as exposureillumination 216 a, 216 b. Each emanating structure 218 a, 218 b mayinclude any permutation of the prism 148 a, 148 b (not shown in FIG. 9but discussed with respect to FIG. 7B), collimating lens 150 a, 150 b(not shown in FIG. 9 but discussed with respect to FIG. 7B), patterngenerating surface 152 a, 152 b (not shown in FIG. 9 but discussed withrespect to FIG. 7B), and one or more filters 214 a, 214 b. The one ormore filter(s) 214 a, 214 b may include: i) a narrow band filter (e.g. asingle-color filter passing a single color of illumination such as red,blue, or another color); ii) a low pass filter passing all color bandsbelow a predetermined wavelength; and/or iii) a high pass filter passingall color bands above a predetermined wavelength. When the one or morefilters 214 a, 214 b is a narrow band filter (e.g. a single colorfilter), the exposure illumination 216 a, 216 b may be a single color(e.g., red, blue, or another single color). The redirection ofillumination by the illumination emanating structures 218 a, 218 b mayoccur by reflection from a chamfered end of the light pipe 210positioned directly below the illumination emanating structures 218 a,218 b.

In some embodiments, the light pipe 210 and the illumination emanatingstructures 218 a, 218 b may be configured (positioned) such that theexposure illumination 216 a, 216 b is offset from the camera's photosensor 42 (in the plane defined by the back surface 74 of the mobiledevice 18) in order to prevent glare. In other words, the exposureillumination 216 a, 216 b may be directed toward the target area 140from locations that are not directly in front of the camera's photosensor 42.

FIG. 9 depicts just one example of a supplementary exposure illuminationsystem as a component of the barcode reading enhancement system for amobile device. Other supplementary exposure illumination systems mayinclude any of the optic elements (including illumination generatingLEDs) which form a direct bright field illumination system, a diffusebright field illumination system, and a dark field illumination systemas described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/510,341, entitled“DIFFUSE BRIGHT FIELD ILLUMINATION SYSTEM FOR A BARCODE READER,” filedon Oct. 9, 2014. It should further be appreciated that the supplementaryexposure illumination systems utilizing the optic elements of the directbright field illumination system, the diffuse bright field illuminationsystem, and the dark field illumination system from the Ser. No.14/510,341 application may further utilize the correspondingillumination sources in conjunction with such optics.

The attachments described herein may include a supplementary opticsystem as a component of the barcode reading enhancement system for amobile device. An “optic system” may be any set of one or morecomponents positioned in the camera field of view 38 of a cameraassembly 36 to modify one or more parameters regarding the lightreceived by the camera, such as the quantity of the light received, theoptical pathway along which the light is received, the angular size ofthe field of view, the depth of field, the focus distance, the f-number,and/or the wavelength(s) of the light received. Thus, an optic system,in various components, may include any of various components such aslenses, filters, mirrors, apertures, and the like. Stated another way,the one or more optical elements within the camera field of view 38 ofthe camera assembly 36, in combination with the lens assembly 40 of thecamera, define a barcode reading optic system (the combination) whichprovides superior barcode reading capabilities over the lens assembly 40alone.

FIGS. 10A and 10B depict examples of a mobile device attachment (shownas mounted attachment 110) that include a supplementary lens system thatincludes permutations of: i) one or more lens(es) 200, optical filter(s)204; and iii) an aperture 202.

The aperture 202 limits the amount of light that reaches the camera'sphoto sensor 42 through the camera's lens assembly 40. Morespecifically, the aperture 202 may be an aperture within an opaquebarrier material which defines the aperture (f-number) of thesupplementary lens system and, when part of the barcode reading opticsystem, may define the optical aperture (f-number) of the barcodereading optical system.

The aperture of the barcode reading optical system, as defined by theaperture 202, may provide for an increased depth of field (e.g. a systemdepth of field) over the depth of field provided by the lens assembly40. With increased depth of field, an image on the photo sensor 42sufficiently sharp (focused) for barcode reading may be achieved withoutthe need for auto focusing and therefore the decode response time may beimproved because the barcode reading process does not require atime-consuming auto-focusing step.

The one or more lens(es) 200 may alter the field of view 38 of thecamera assembly 36 and/or magnification of the camera assembly 36 (e.g.provide a system field of view 207 that is different from the field ofview 38 of the camera assembly 36).

The one or more filter(s) 204 may include: i) a narrow band filter (e.g.a single-color filter passing a single color of illumination such asred, blue, or another color); ii) a low pass filter passing all colorbands below a predetermined wavelength; and/or iii) a high pass filterpassing all color bands above a predetermined wavelength.

For example, it may be desirable to capture predominantly light of arelatively narrow segment of the visible portion of the electromagneticspectrum, such as red light with a wavelength of approximately 660 nm.The filter 204 may thus have a colored tint and/or polarization with anarrow wavelength band desired for image capture for effective barcodedecoding.

As mentioned previously, the parameters of the camera assembly 36, suchas the angular size of the camera field of view 38, the range of focusdepths, and the depth of field of the camera assembly 36 may not beideal for barcode capture and/or decoding. Thus, any or all of theseparameters may be modified by the optic system of the attachment. Thus,the system field of view 207 may have an angular size that issignificantly smaller than the angular size of the camera field of view38. This may be because conventional photography often uses a wider lensangle than is needed for capturing barcode images.

The system field of view 207 may provide a system ratio of focal lengthto entrance pupil diameter that is greater than a camera ratio of focallength to entrance pupil diameter of the unmodified optic system of thecamera assembly 36 such that the optic system of the attachment acts toincrease the f-stop of the camera lens assembly 40.

Further, the mobile device 18 and the optic system of the attachment100, combined, may have a depth of field (not shown), consisting of thedepth along the system optical pathway 205 through which an object mayremain in focus (to a degree acceptable for barcode capture and/ordecoding) on either side of the system focus depth. A relatively largedepth of field may advantageously permit barcode capture and/or decodingat a wider ranges of distances between the mobile device 18 and thebarcode to be captured. Thus, the attachment lens may advantageouslyprovide a relatively larger depth of field, particularly at shorterfocus depths, than the camera assembly 36, unaided.

The system field of view 207 may be centered on a system opticalpathway, which may be the same as the optical pathway 205 for the cameraassembly 36 without the attachment. More specifically, the cameraassembly 36 may be designed to capture images centered on an opticalpathway 205 perpendicular to the back surface 74 of the mobile device18. In certain embodiments this optical pathway is not modified by theattachment; thus, the system optical pathway 205 may be the same as theoptical pathway for the camera assembly 36. In other embodiments, anattachment may provide a different optical pathway for barcode scanning,as will be shown and described with respect to FIGS. 10C and 10D.

FIG. 10C depicts an example of a mobile device attachment (shown as amounted attachment 110) that includes a mirror 220 that changes theoptical path of illumination (i.e. reflected light) 222 reflected fromthe barcode to the mobile device 18 from a direction that is generallyparallel to the face surface 72 and the back surface 74 of the mobiledevice 18 to a direction that is generally orthogonal to the lensassembly 40 and the photo sensor 42 of the camera assembly 36 of themobile device 18.

The attachment 110 permits a user of the mobile device 18 to attempt toread a barcode 142 positioned within a field of view that is beyond thetop edge 78 of the mobile device by aiming the top side (the top edge78) of the mobile device 18 at the barcode 142. The light 222 reflectedfrom the barcode 142 is redirected by the mirror 220 toward the mobiledevice's focusing lens assembly 40, which focuses the reflected light222 onto the photo sensor 42.

Stated another way, the field of view 38 of the camera assembly 36 wouldhave a center line that is generally orthogonal to the planar backsurface 74 of the mobile device 18 (and orthogonal to the planar displayon the face surface 72 of the mobile device 18) and that extends towardsa target area 140 from the back surface 74 of the mobile device 18. Themirror 220 is within such field of view and folds the field of view suchthat its center line is parallel to the back surface 74 of the mobiledevice 18 (and the display on the face surface 72 of the mobile device18) and extends towards a target area 140 from the top side of themobile device 18.

In the depicted example, the mirror 220 is positioned so that thereflected light 222 is redirected by 90°. Alternatively, the mirror 220may be positioned so that the reflected light 222 is redirected by adifferent angle. For example, FIG. 10D depicts a mirror 220 positionedso that the reflected light is redirected by an angle 221 between 30 and60 degrees from perpendicular to the back surface 74.

It should be appreciated that, although not depicted in either FIG. 10Cor 10D, the attachment 110, in addition to including the mirror 220 toredirect the reflected light 222, may further include any permutation ofoptic components discussed with respect to FIGS. 10A and 10B forpurposes of altering one or more of the depth of field, the f-number,the angle of the field of view, or the focal plane of the lens assembly40 of the camera assembly 36. Such optic components may be locatedwithin the region 224 a of the attachment 110 or the region 224 b of theattachment.

FIGS. 11A, 11B, 12A, 12B, 12C, 12D, 13, 14, and 15 depict additionalexamples of attachments which may be, or form, a part of the barcodereading enhancement system for a mobile device. Although each attachmentdepicted in FIGS. 11A, 11B, 12A, 12B, 12C, 12D, 13, 14, and 15 isdepicted in one of the general structures described with respect to FIG.4A, 4B, 5A, 5B, 5C, 6A, or 6B, the arrangement of target-generatingmechanisms, supplementary illumination systems, and supplementary opticsystems described above with respect to FIGS. 7A, 7B, 8A-8D, 9, and10A-10D may be utilized in any of the general structures.

FIG. 11A depicts an attachment 20 (shown in partial view) with atarget-generating mechanism 136 which projects a targeting beam 138 fromthe top edge 78 of the mobile device 18 to the top side of the mobiledevice 18 to form a targeting pattern 160 within a target area 140whereas the attachments depicted in FIGS. 7A and 7B include atarget-generating mechanism 136 which projects a targeting beam 138 fromthe back surface 74 of the mobile device 18 and generates the targetingpattern 160 within a target area 140.

The attachment 20 may further include a structure 230 (with a mirror220) as depicted in, and described with respect to, FIG. 10C or 10D forredirecting illumination reflected from a barcode in the target areaextending from the top edge 78 of the mobile device 18 towards the lensassembly 40 of the camera assembly 36 on the back surface 74 of themobile device 18. More specifically, the mirror 220 may be a firstmirror within a first chamber 232 within the field of view 38 of thecamera assembly 36 (not shown) on the back surface 74 of the mobiledevice 16. The first mirror 220 may be positioned at approximately a45-degree angle to the center line of the field of view 38 of the cameraassembly 36 to fold the field of view of the camera by approximately 90degrees such that the field of view 38 of the camera assembly 36 extendstowards the target area 140 extending from the top edge 78 (the topside) of the mobile device 18 instead of from the back surface 74 of themobile device 18 as described with respect to FIG. 10A. Alternatively,the first mirror 220 may be positioned at an angle between 30 degreesand 60 degrees from the plane of the back surface 74 of the mobiledevice.

Further as described with respect to FIGS. 10A and 10B (and although notdepicted in FIG. 11A) any permutation of the optics described withrespect to FIGS. 10A and 10B may be positioned within the first chamber232 for purposes of altering one or more of the depth of field, thef-number, the angle of the field of view, or the focal plane of the lensassembly 40 of the camera assembly 36.

The target-generating mechanism may include a second mirror 234, withina second chamber 236, generally parallel to the first mirror 220, butaligned with the white light source 84 on the back surface 74 of themobile device 18, and may fold the illumination from the white lightsource 84 (by the same angle at which the first mirror 220 folds thefield of view of the camera assembly 36) towards the target area 140extending from the top edge 78 of the mobile device 18. The firstchamber 232 may be separated from the second chamber 236 by an opaquewall or baffle to prevent illumination within the second chamber beingincident on the first mirror 220 and reflected by the first mirror 220onto the lens assembly 40 of the camera assembly 36 and therebydegrading the image quality of an image of a barcode 142 within thetarget area 140.

The target-generating mechanism may further include any of the targetingstructures 136 described with respect to FIGS. 7A and 7B for forming andprojecting the targeting beams 138 of a distinct illumination patterninto the target area 140. In FIG. 11A, the target-generating structure136 is depicted as two culminating lens structures arranged horizontally(within a line generally parallel to the lines formed by the interfaceof the top edge 78 with each of the face surface 72 and the back surface74 of the mobile device). Each of the collimating lens structures mayproject a targeting pattern 160 into the target area 140 which issimilar to the targeting pattern 400 depicted in FIG. 7D. Again, thetargeting pattern 400 may be projected into the center of the field ofview and the angular size of the targeting pattern with respect todistance from the mobile device 18 may be the same as the angle of thefield of view and therefore may serve as both the distinct illuminationpattern indicating the field of view and the diffuse illumination(within the field of view) for exposure illumination.

FIG. 11B depicts an attachment (depicted as a corner- or edge-mountedattachment 100) which is similar in structure to the encapsulatingattachment 110 of FIG. 11A but with target-generating structures 136arranged vertically (within a line generally perpendicular to the linesformed by the interface of the top edge 78 with each of the face surface72 and the back surface 74 of the mobile device). The attachment 100 ofFIG. 11B may further include an exposure illumination structure 238which may utilize any of the elements described with respect to FIG. 9or any of the supplementary exposure illumination systems which form thedirect bright field illumination system, the diffuse bright fieldillumination system, and/or the dark field illumination system asdescribed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/510,341, entitled“DIFFUSE BRIGHT FIELD ILLUMINATION SYSTEM FOR A BARCODE READER,” filedon Oct. 9, 2014.

As stated with respect to FIG. 11A, the target-generating structure 136may utilize the second mirror 234 to redirect illumination generated bythe white light source 84 into the target-generating structure 136 toform targeting beams 138 or may utilize illumination sources within theattachment 110. With respect to the embodiment of FIG. 11B, one of thetargeting illumination sources or the exposure illumination source maybe the white light source 84 of the mobile device 18 (reflecting from amirror) and the other may be an illumination source within theattachment.

FIGS. 12A, 12B, 12C and 12D represent an attachment (shown as anencapsulating attachment 110) with a target-generating structure 136that may be repositioned and used for any embodiments described hereinwhere the white light source 84 of the mobile device 18 providesillumination for the target-generating mechanism 136 (which as discussedwith respect to FIG. 7D may also be the exposure illumination system).The repositionable target-generating structure 136 is useful for uses ofthe mobile device 18 where, in addition to utilizing the white lightsource 84 and the camera assembly 36 for barcode reading, the whitelight source 84 and the camera assembly 36 are used for traditionalphotography.

FIGS. 12A and 12B depict the target-generating structure 136 as beingpivotally repositionable between: i) a first position 440 as depicted inFIG. 12A wherein the target-generating structure 136 is positioned infront of the white light source 84 (i.e. an illuminating torch) suchthat illumination from the white light source 84 is shaped by thetarget-generating structure 136 into a distinct targeting illuminationpattern; and ii) a second position 442 as depicted in FIG. 12B whereinthe target-generating structure 136 is positioned outside of theillumination field of the white light source 84 such that theillumination from the white light source 84 is unmodified by thetarget-generating structure 136 and can be used for illumination whenusing the camera assembly 36 of the mobile device 18 to takephotographic pictures.

As depicted in FIGS. 12A and 12B, the target-generating structure 136may be secured to the attachment 110 by a flexible band 444 such thatthe target-generating structure 136 may be pivoted in the direction 446between position 440 and position 442 by flexure of the flexible band.It is also envisioned that a more traditional hinge/hinge pin structuremay also provide for pivoting the target-generating structure 136between position 440 and position 442 in alternative embodiments.

FIGS. 12C and 12D depict the target-generating structure 136 beinglaterally repositionable between: i) a first position 448 as depicted inFIG. 12C wherein the target-generating structure 136 is positioned infront of the white illumination source 84 (i.e. an illuminating torch)such that the illumination from the white light source 84 is shaped bythe target-generating structure 136 into a targeting pattern; and ii) asecond position 450 as depicted in FIG. 12D wherein thetarget-generating structure 136 is positioned outside of theillumination field of the white light source 84 such that theillumination from the white light source 84 is unmodified by thetarget-generating mechanism 136 and can be used for illumination whenusing the camera assembly 36 of the mobile device 18 to takephotographic pictures. As depicted in FIGS. 12C and 12D, thetarget-generating structure 136 may be secured to the attachment 110within a channel 452 such that the target-generating structure 136 maybe laterally repositioned in the direction 454 between position 448 andposition 450.

FIG. 13 depicts another exemplary attachment (shown as an encapsulatingattachment 100) for a mobile device 18. The attachment 100 may have ahousing 460 defining an interior cavity 462 of the attachment 100 whichis separate from a cavity in which the attachment 100 encapsulates themobile device 18.

The cavity 462 within the housing 460 may be divided into one or morechambers separated by an opaque barrier in order to restrict lightpassage from components in one chamber to components in another. Forexample, the cavity 462 may have a first chamber 264 and a secondchamber 266. An opaque barrier 268 may separate the first chamber 264from the second chamber 266 in a manner that prevents light from eitherof the first chamber 264 and the second chamber 266 from passingdirectly into the other chamber.

The first chamber 264 may be larger than the second chamber 266, and maycontain components such as a supplementary optic system 271, attachmentcontrol circuitry 270, and an attachment battery 272.

The supplementary optic system 271 may be any of the embodimentsdescribed with respect to FIGS. 10A and 10B. A window 278 within thehousing 460 may be in alignment with the supplementary optic system 271so that illumination reflected from the target area 140 is able to enterthe first chamber 264 via the window 278 to reach the supplemental opticsystem 271 and, after passing through the supplemental optic system 271,be received and captured by the camera assembly 36 of the mobile device18.

In some embodiments, the window 278 may be transparent and function toenclose the first chamber 264. In other embodiments, the window 278itself may be a component of the supplementary optic system 271 formodifying one or more of the depth of field, the f-number, the angle ofthe field of view, or the focal plane of the lens assembly 40 of thecamera assembly 36.

For example, the window 278 may filter illumination reflected from thetarget area 140 (e.g. pass and/or attenuate certain wavelengths ofillumination). The filter characteristics may include any of the filtercharacteristics described with respect to the filter 214 a, 214 b ofFIG. 9.

The second chamber 266 may include one or more of a targetingillumination system 280 and an exposure illumination system 282. Thetargeting illumination system 280 may utilize an illumination source 284and any of the targeting structures 136 described with respect to FIG.7A or 7B to project a targeting beam (not shown) with a distinctillumination pattern (which may be any of the targeting patternsdescribed with respect to FIGS. 8A, 8B, 8C and 8D) towards the targetarea 140.

The exposure illuminating system 282 may utilize an exposureillumination source 286 and the exposure illumination structuredescribed with respect to FIG. 9 or U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/510,341. The exposure illumination source 286 may include variouslight sources, including but not limited to lasers, LED's, incandescentlights, fluorescent lights, and the like.

The attachment control circuitry 270 of this embodiment may control eachof the targeting illumination system 280 and the exposure illuminationsystem 282. The targeting illumination system 280 may be configured toproject light into the target area 140 prior to and/or after imagecapture so as to avoid interfering with decodability of the barcodeimage. Conversely, the exposure illumination system 282 may projectillumination into the target area 140 during image capture.

The targeting illumination system 280 and the exposure illuminationsystem 282 may also be connected to an attachment battery 272, eitherindependently of the attachment control circuitry 270, or via theattachment control circuitry 270. Thus, the targeting illuminationsystem 280 and the exposure illumination system 282 may be controlled bythe attachment control circuitry 270 and powered by the attachmentbattery 272.

The attachment control circuitry 270 may further include, or beelectrically connected to, an attachment communications interface, whichmay be coupled to the mobile device power/data interface 64 via a link276 a and/or the speaker/microphone connector 34 via a link 276 b.

The housing 460 may further contain a user control 288, which may beactuated by the user to perform various functions, such as initiatingthe capture of a barcode. The user control 288 may include any form ofuser inputs known in the art, including but not limited to switches,levers, knobs, touch screens, microphones coupled to voice-operationsoftware, and the like. The user control 288 may advantageously take theform of a trigger that can be actuated, for example, with the indexfinger of the user. In alternative embodiments, the housing 460 may bemodified to have a pistol grip or other grip that enhances theergonomics of the housing 460 and/or facilitates actuation of the usercontrol similar to the housing depicted in FIG. 14.

FIG. 14 depicts another exemplary attachment (shown as an encapsulatingattachment 100 as an example) for a mobile device 18. The attachment 100may have a handle 158 which extends downward away from the back surface74 of the mobile device 18 and is sized and shaped to be gripped by anoperator with the operator's thumb and forefinger being positioned at ashoulder 159 where the handle 158 meets a portion of the attachment 100which is adjacent to the back surface 74 of the mobile device 18. Whenheld in this manner the face surface 72 of the mobile device is visibleto an operator looking downward.

A trigger switch 157 is positioned at the shoulder 159 and is intendedto enable the operator to trigger reading of a barcode utilizing thesame ergonomics of a typical “gun” type of barcode reader. The triggerswitch 157 activates a trigger circuit 161.

The attachment 100 includes a microphone connector 155 (shown as aspeaker/microphone male connector coupled within the speaker/microphoneconnector 34 of the mobile device 18).

The trigger circuit 161 includes an oscillator circuit configured tocreate a potential difference between the ground contact and themicrophone contact of the speaker/microphone connector 155 that isdetectable by the mobile device 18. The potential difference may begenerated by physical movement of a magnet with respect to a coil withsuch physical movement being generated by pulling the trigger switch157. A combination of springs and spring-activated switches mayaccentuate the movement of the magnet with respect to the coil and/orbreak the circuit to ensure that activation of the trigger switch 157 isdetectable by the mobile device 18.

The attachment 100 may also include a structure described with respectto FIG. 10C or 10D for purposes of folding the optical path forillumination reflected from the target area 140 so that the field ofview of the camera assembly 36 (e.g. the system field of view) is foldedfrom the back surface 74 of the mobile device towards the target area140 positioned at the top side of the mobile device 18. The attachment100 also includes a battery 163 for supplying power to the components inthe attachment 100.

FIG. 15 illustrates a mobile device 18 with an attachment 20 which mayinclude supplemental optics 271 for image capture and atarget-generating mechanism 136 which utilizes the white light source 84of the mobile device 18 to generate an intense targeting illuminationpattern into the target area.

More particularly, the target-generating mechanism 136 may comprise acollimating lens 150 which is positioned within, and modifies, the fieldof illumination 151 of the white light source 84 into the shape of anintense targeting illumination pattern, which may be a pattern depictedin any of FIG. 8A, 8B, 8C or 8D. The target-generating mechanism 136 mayinclude a filter 214 which may be a band pass filter or a low passfilter as described with respect to FIG. 19C for passing a certain colorof illumination while attenuating wavelengths other than the certaincolor.

In a case where the intense targeting illumination pattern is asdepicted in FIG. 8D with diffuse illumination across the field of view,the system illumination field 155 (illumination as modified by thetarget-generating mechanism 136) may substantially overlap with thesystem field of view 207. Thus, with the aid of the target-generatingmechanism 136 the system field of view 207 may be effectivelyilluminated with diffuse illumination and the borders of the diffuseillumination (depicted in FIG. 8D) may enable the user to properlyposition the mobile device 18 with respect to a barcode in the targetarea 140.

In the event the targeting pattern does not provide diffuse illuminationacross the system field of view 207, the supplemental optics 271 mayinclude a high pass filter described with respect to FIG. 19C such thatthe illumination of the targeting pattern (as filtered) is attenuated bythe high pass filter and does not affect the intensity of theillumination incident on the photo sensor 42.

The barcode reading enhancement system of the present invention mayinclude a barcode application 50 that may be obtained from theapplication server 16 (shown in FIG. 1) and installed on the mobiledevice 18 as described with respect to FIG. 3.

FIG. 16 shows a block diagram of an exemplary barcode application 500.The exemplary barcode application 500 may include permutations of a userinterface control method 502, image capture control methods 504, adecoder 506, and a data control method 508.

FIG. 17 depicts a state machine 642 useful for user interface controlmethods 502 of the barcode application 500. The state machine 642 mayoperate either in a user interface state 644 or in a data collectionstate 646.

When in the user interface state 644, the (capacitive touch) displayscreen 66 and the backlight for the display screen are active and thecontents of the display screen 66 may be controlled by the barcodeapplication 500. When in the data collection state 646, the (capacitivetouch) display screen 66 may be turned off; the (capacitive touch)display screen 66 may be turned on, but the backlight may be turned off;or both the (capacitive touch) display screen 66 and the backlight maybe turned on, but the backlight intensity may be set to a minimum. Thedata collection state 646 is intended for conserving power (i.e., forextending battery life) when the operator is using the mobile device 18to read barcodes and does not need to simultaneously use the (captivetouch) display screen 66 for manual data entry.

To transition 648 from the user interface state 644 to the datacollection state 646, the barcode application 500 utilizing the datacontrol methods 508 may make a processing call to the operating systemof the mobile device 18 requesting to i) turn off the display andbacklight; ii) turn off the backlight (in the event the operating systemdoes not make the function of turning off the display available to theapplication); or iii) turn the backlight power to a minimum (in theevent the operating system does not make the function of turning off thedisplay or turning off the backlight available to the application). Ifnone of the foregoing options are available, the barcode application maysimply write a black image to the display and enter a state where allinput though the touch panel is ignored, thereby giving the appearancethat the display has been turned off.

When in the data collection state 646, multiple barcodes can be read insequence (utilizing the camera and targeting structure described hereinbut not requiring use of the display for targeting) and processed,stored, and/or transmitted by the application without requiring any userinteraction with the user interface. Examples of the functions that maybe performed by the application when in the data collection statewithout requiring user input include the functions of the relayapplication described in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/319,193, entitled “BARCODE READING SYSTEM INCLUDING A SLED READER ANDRELAY APPLICATION,” filed on Jun. 30, 2014.

When a transition 650 to the user interface state 644 is required, thebarcode application 500 may make a processing call to the operatingsystem of the mobile device 18 requesting to i) turn on the display(i.e., the touch panel, backlight) in the event that these are turnedoff during the data collection state 646; ii) turn on the backlight (inthe event the operating system does not make the function of turning offthe display available to the application and therefore the displayremains “on” while the backlight remains “off” during the datacollection state 646); or iii) turn the backlight power up to a presentlevel (in the event the operating system does not make the function ofturning off the display or turning off the backlight available to theapplication both remain “on” during the data collection state 646 whilethe backlight power has been turned down).

Events that may trigger transition 648 from the user interface state 644to the data collection state 646 include user activation of a hardwarecontrol on the mobile device 18 or activation of a software controlpresent on the display screen when in the user interface state 644.Events that may trigger transition 650 from the data collection state646 to the user interface state 644 include user activation of ahardware control on the mobile device 18 or a signal from a remotesoftware application which may include the application to which themobile device 18 is sending decoded barcode data.

Returning to FIG. 16, the image capture control methods 504 may comprisepermutations of color format control methods 504 a, autofocus controlmethods 504 b, auto-white balance control methods 504 c, resolution andpre-processing control methods 504 d, gain and shutter control methods504 e, and target and exposure illumination and shutter control methods504 f.

Permutations of these methods may be performed when the barcodeapplication 500 enters the data collection state 646 such that themobile device 18 is configured for barcode reading prior to the operatortriggering or otherwise initiating a barcode read. Permutation of thesemethods may be performed immediately following an unsuccessful decodewith adjustments made to certain image capture settings based onanalysis of the image that yielded the unsuccessful decode so that themobile device 18 is re-configured for barcode reading prior to the nextimage capture. Permutations of these methods may be performed after theuser has triggered or otherwise initiated a barcode read but prior toactual image capture to configure the mobile device 18 for the imagecapture.

As stated with respect to FIGS. 2A and 2E, the camera assembly 36 may becapable of generating both Y.U.V and R.G.B. color formatted outputs. Thecolor format control methods 504 a may query whether the image sensorand/or associated circuitry has been set to provide an output in theY.U.V. color space. If not, the color format control method 504 a mayissue a command to the operating system 48, the processor 44, or thesystem-on-chip circuits 92 to set the image sensor output to the Y.U.V.color space.

The R.G.B. format may commonly be used for general-purpose photography.However, for barcode reading and/or decoding, it may be advantageous touse the Y.U.V. format instead. This is because decoding a barcode imagemay be mostly reliant upon the pattern defined by the luminous intensity168 (shown in FIG. 2D) of each pixel in the barcode image. Optionally,the first chromatic 170 and the second chromatic 172 may even be ignoredby the application that decodes the barcode image.

Thus, the output module 91 of the system on-chip circuits 92 may be setto provide the output 162 in the form of the Y.U.V. data format 166 (oruse Y.U.V data for the input to image processing circuits within thesystem-on-chip circuits 92). Accordingly, the application 50 mayinstruct the output module 91, directly, through the operating system48, or through other control circuitry to cause the output module 91 toprovide the digital image output 162, or use for image processingcircuits, data in the Y.U.V format when the photo sensor 42 is to beused for capturing a barcode image and return to R.G.B. format forgeneral photography when barcode capturing operations are complete.

In one embodiment, for barcode images, the output module 91 may be setto provide the digital image output 162, or use for image processing,data in the form of the luminous intensity 168 for each pixel, and thefirst chromatic 170 and the second chromatic 172 may not even beprovided or used. This may reduce the traffic on the data bus, reduceimage processing time for image processing circuits, reduce theprocessing load of the processor 44, and/or save space in the image databuffer 89 of the memory 46.

As discussed with respect to FIG. 2A, the mobile device 18 may includean auto focus module 98. The auto focus module 98 may be optimized forphotography. The image capture control methods 504 of the application500 may include auto focus control methods 504 b for adjusting theautofocus settings of the auto focus module 98 for barcode imagecapture. More specifically, the distance between the mobile device 18and a barcode 142 within a target area 140 may be within a relativelypredictable range of distances which is a much smaller ranger ofdistances between mobile device and the subject of a general purposephotograph. Thus, using customized autofocus settings for barcode imagecapture may facilitate obtaining proper focus and/or expedite the imagecapture process.

FIG. 18A illustrates exemplary autofocus options in the form of a graph610. As shown, a horizontal axis 612 represents a nonlinear continuum offocus positions (object distance that is best focused onto the photosensor). The camera assembly 36 of the mobile device 18 may have a fullrange 614 of focus positions. However, those on the upper and lower endsof the full range 614 may not be needed for barcode image capturebecause they represent object distances which are less than, or greaterthan, the typical distance between a barcode reader and a barcode.Accordingly, the autofocus settings of the camera assembly 36 may beconfigured specifically for barcode image capture, for example, viacommands to the autofocus module 98 (or the operating system 48controlling the autofocus module 98).

By way of example, the commands to the autofocus module 98 (or operatingsystem 48) may allow the camera assembly 36 to focus at object distanceswithin a limited range 616. The limited range 616 may represent theuseful range of object distances for barcode image capture, and excludeobject distances too close to the mobile device 18 and object distancestoo far from the mobile device 18 for barcode reading.

As another example, the commands to the autofocus module 98 (or theoperating system 48) may limit focus positions to discrete positionssuch as a first position 618 a, a second position 618 b, and a thirdposition 618 c. The first position 618 a, the second position 618 b, andthe third position 618 c may represent useful object distances forbarcode image capture. The optic system may have sufficient depth offield at each of the discrete positions to accommodate image capture ofa barcode within the target area 140 with sufficient sharpness fordecoding.

Setting auto focus to one of a plurality of discrete focus settings mayutilize a feedback-loop algorithm that is faster than the feedback-loopalgorithms for auto focus when performing photography wherein the imageis analyzed for sharpness and best focus position is determined withinthe entire range.

As discussed with respect to FIG. 2A, the system-on-chip circuits 92 mayinclude an auto-white balance module 93. As such the auto-white balancecontrol methods 504 c of the application 500 (shown in FIG. 16) mayissue a command to the operating system 48, the processor 44, or theauto-white balance module 93 to disable the auto-white balance functionof the image sensor and/or associated circuitry. This may be done, asindicated previously, to avoid degrading contrast when a narrow band ofillumination frequency is focused onto the image sensor for barcodereading.

As such, for barcode images, the output module 91 may be set to providethe digital image output 162, or use for image processing, data that hasnot been subjected to modification by the disabled auto-white balancemodule 93.

The resolution and pre-processing control methods 504 d may control theresolution for the output image as well as other image processing whichmay be performed on the output image prior to storing in the image databuffer 89 for decoding. Speed enhancements for image processing anddecoding may be obtained by altering the resolution of the capturedimage. While high resolution images (e.g. 8 megapixels or more) may bedesirable for conventional photography, this resolution may not beneeded for barcode imaging and decoding. As long as the resolution issufficient for successful decoding of a barcode, there is typically noneed for an image of greater resolution.

Selection of the resolution may be done, for example, based on the typeof barcode to be scanned, the size of the barcode within the outputimage, and other factors, which may be determined from previous imagescaptured of the barcode. The resolution selected may be full resolution(i.e., one output pixel for each pixel captured by the image sensor) orbinned (i.e., one output pixel for each group of x pixels captured bythe image sensor).

FIG. 18B illustrates exemplary resolution binning methods that can beused to reduce the resolution of a barcode image. An exemplary image maybe captured, by way of example, in three different ways. In a firstscheme 620, no binning may be applied, and the image output may be thenative resolution (full resolution) of the photo sensor 42 (one digitalpixel value for each pixel captured by the photo sensor 42). In a secondscheme 622, moderate binning may be applied so that the output has onedigital pixel value, for example, for every four pixels captured by thephoto sensor 42. The resulting output image data may thus be one-quarterof the resolution of the captured image data. In a third scheme 624,more aggressive binning may be applied so that the output has onedigital pixel value, for example, for every six pixels captured by thephoto sensor 42. The resulting output image data may thus be verticalbinning (non-square) and one-sixth of the resolution of the capturedimage data.

When binning is applied, various mathematical algorithms may be used toobtain the value of an output pixel, based on its constituent pixels ofthe captured image. According to some examples, the intensity values ofthe constituent pixels may be averaged to provide the value of theresulting output pixel.

The foregoing description is illustrative of certain imaging processingthat may be performed on image data while being transferred through thehardware circuits 90 and DMA 86 to the image data buffer 89. A morecomplete description of image processing algorithms that may beimplemented in the hardware circuits 90 (or the system-on-chip circuits92) is included in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/717,112, entitled“BARCODE READER,” filed on May 20, 2015. In the exemplary embodiment,the image resolution and pre-processing control methods 504 d of thebarcode application 500 may provide instructions to the hardwarecircuits 90, the system-on-chip circuits 92, and/or the operating systemto set any of the foregoing image pre-processing options as well asimage pre-processing options described in the Ser. No. 14/171,112application.

In all cases, setting the resolution and image pre-processing selectionsmay entail the resolution and pre-processing control methods 504 dissuing a command to the operating system 48, the processor 44, theapplicable image processing circuits within the hardware circuits 90, orthe applicable image processing circuits within the system-on-chipcircuits 92.

Gain and shutter control methods 504 e may comprise setting imagecapture parameter values for one or more image frames to be sequentiallycaptured, including a gain setting and an exposure setting for eachframe as described in more detail in the Ser. No. 14/171,112application.

FIG. 19A depicts an exemplary embodiment of target and exposureillumination and shutter control methods 504 f in accordance with oneembodiment. Step 542 represents receiving a trigger signal indicatingthat a barcode is to be read. The trigger signal may be received inseveral alternative ways as represented by steps 542 a-542 e. Asdiscussed, the barcode application 500 may have a user interface (notshown) with one or more graphical elements displayed on the displayscreen 66. The user may use such graphical elements to initiate thebarcode scanning process (for example, by tapping a “scan” soft buttonon the display screen 66) (542 a).

Alternatively, the application may monitor the microphone input 34 b andthe trigger signal may be a microphone input signal generated by theattachment as described with respect to FIG. 14 (542 b).

Alternatively, the application may monitor the data connector 64 b andthe trigger signal may be a data input signal generated by theattachment as described with respect to FIG. 13 (542 c).

Alternatively, the application may monitor the wireless communicationsystem 52 and the trigger signal may be a wireless (RF) trigger signalgenerated by the attachment (542 d).

Alternatively the application may monitor the target area 140 utilizinga sensor and the trigger signal may be automatically generated by theapplication detecting the presence of a barcode within the target area140 (542 e).

Step 544 represents pulsing the target illumination to generate adistinct illumination pattern within the target area 140 to assist theoperator in aiming the mobile device 18 with respect to the barcode forimage capture. The pulse may be generated for a duration sufficient forthe operator to aim the mobile device 18 or may be a shorter period oftime (on the order of 10 ms). As discussed, the target illumination maybe generated by the white light source 84 of the mobile device 18 (step544 a) or may be an external target illumination source (step 544 b)within the attachment.

Step 546 represents a step of activing the exposure illumination. Incertain embodiments ambient illumination is used for providing diffuseillumination for image capture of a barcode. In these embodiments step546 may not be performed. In other embodiments the exposure illuminationmay be activated for image capture (step 546). As discussed, theexposure illumination may be generated by the white light source 84 ofthe mobile device 18 (step 546 a) or may be an external exposureillumination source (step 546 b) within the attachment. The barcodeimage is then captured (step 548).

Step 550 represents determining whether there has been a successfuldecode of the barcode represented in the captured image. If it has beensuccessful, then the method may end. If there has not been a successfuldecode, the image capture parameters may be adjusted at step 552 and thetarget illumination system may again be pulsed to further assist theuser in aiming the mobile device 18 with respect to the barcode at step544. It is recognized that several repeats of this process may berequired for: i) the operator to properly aim the mobile device 18 withrespect to the barcode (if the target illumination pulse is short), andii) the operator to have a correct combination of image captureparameters such that the resulting image is decodable.

FIG. 19B depicts another exemplary embodiment of target and exposureillumination and shutter control methods 504 f in accordance withanother embodiment. Some of the steps in FIGS. 19A and 19B are the sameand such steps will not be explained in detail for simplicity.

Step 542′ (i.e., any one of 542 a′ to 542 e′) represents receiving atrigger signal indicating that a barcode is to be read.

Step 554′ represents turning on a combination of targeting and exposureillumination. As discussed with respect to FIG. 8D, the intensetargeting illumination pattern 400 may include diffuse illuminationacross a region that coincides with the system field of view 207 suchthat the targeting illumination is also the exposure illumination. Asdiscussed, the targeting and exposure illumination may be generated bythe white light source 84 of the mobile device 18 (step 554 a′) or maybe an external illumination source within the attachment (step 554 b′).

Step 548′ represents image capture of a barcode, step 550′ representsdetermining whether there was a successful decode, and step 552′represents adjusting image capture parameters based on the previousimage captured all as discussed with respect to FIG. 19A. If there is asuccessful decoding the targeting exposure illumination may be turnedoff at step 556′. If the decoding is not successful another image of thebarcode may be captured (step 548′) following adjustment of imagecapture parameters (step 552′) if any.

FIG. 19C represents a filtering arrangement for the targetingillumination and the supplemental optics which enable use of the methodsof FIG. 19B even if the intense targeting illumination pattern is notalso a diffuse illumination pattern across the entire barcode within thefield of view.

The visible illumination spectrum 560 generally ranges from about 430 nmto approximately 660 nm. In a first embodiment the targetingillumination structure may include a first narrow band pass filter whichpasses a narrow band of illumination 564 within the visible spectrum 560while attenuating illumination with wavelengths 566 a below the narrowband 564 and wavelengths 566 b above the narrow band 564. In anexemplary embodiment, the first narrow band pass filter may have itsnarrow band 564 centered at a wavelength between 430 nm and 470 nm whichare the wavelengths corresponding to blue illumination. When such afilter is used to filter white illumination, the color of the intensetargeting illumination passed by the filter appears blue.

In another embodiment, a first low pass filter passes wavelengths ofillumination 570 which are within the visible spectrum 560 below apredetermined threshold while attenuating illumination with wavelengths572 above the threshold. In an exemplary embodiment, the predeterminedthreshold may be between 470 nm and 500 nm such that the passedillumination spectrum 570 is substantially blue. When such a filter isused to filter white illumination, the color of the illumination passedby the filter appears blue.

Although the first narrow band pass filter is depicted as having verydistinct edges (e.g. wavelengths within the band are passed with noattenuation and wavelengths outside the band are completely attenuated)it is recognized in the art that the edges are not as distinct asdepicted, and some illumination within the narrow band 564 will beattenuated and some illumination outside of the narrow band 566 a and566 b will be passed. A most efficient filter will minimize the amountof illumination within the narrow band 564 that is attenuated andfurther minimize the amount of illumination that is outside of thenarrow band 566 a and 566 b to be passed.

Similarly, although the low pass filter is depicted as having a verydistinct edge at the threshold (e.g. wavelengths below the threshold arepassed with no attenuation and wavelengths above the threshold arecompletely attenuated) it is recognized in the art that the edge is notas distinct as depicted, and some illumination within the pass band 570will be attenuated and some illumination 572 above the pass band will bepassed. A most efficient filter will minimize the amount of illuminationwithin the pass band 570 that is attenuated and further minimize theamount of illumination 572 that is outside of the pass band 570 to bepassed.

In other embodiments a second filter may be a high pass filter. The highpass filter passes wavelengths of illumination 578 which are within thevisible spectrum 560 above a predetermined threshold while attenuatingillumination with wavelengths 576 below the threshold. In an exemplaryembodiment, the predetermined threshold may be 500 nm such that thepassed illumination spectrum 570 includes the entire visible spectrumexcluding illumination which is substantially blue.

As with the low pass filter, the high pass filter is depicted as havinga very distinct edge at the threshold (e.g. wavelengths above thethreshold are passed with no attenuation and wavelengths below thethreshold are completely attenuated) it is recognized in the art thatthe edge is not as distinct as depicted, and some illumination above thethreshold will be attenuated and some illumination below the thresholdwill be passed. A most efficient filter will minimize the amount ofillumination above the threshold that is attenuated and further minimizethe amount of illumination below the threshold that is passed.

It should be appreciated that when illumination from a white lightsource 84 of a mobile device 18 is filtered utilizing the narrow bandpass filter (a passing band 564) or the low pass filter (a passing band570) such that it appears blue and the illumination incident on thecamera lens is filtered by a high pass filter (a passing band 478 whileattenuating blue illumination), the illumination generated by the whitelight source 84, as filtered, may not be visible to the camera becausethe portion of the illumination passed by the band pass filter (band564) or the low pass filter (band 570) is attenuated by the high passfilter. As such, if the white light source 84 is used for generating anintense targeting illumination pattern within the field of view 207, thetargeting pattern may not be visible to the camera (attenuated by thehigh pass filter) and ambient illumination passed by the high passfilter (band 578) is visible to the camera and is typically sufficientfor imaging and decoding a barcode.

This structure enables the accessory to further utilize optics togenerate a targeting pattern utilizing the white light source 84(filtered before or after being shaped by the optic) and enables theintense targeting illumination pattern to continue to illuminate thebarcode during image capture (enabling the operator to aim the mobiledevice 18 with respect to the barcode) without the targeting patternbeing visible to the camera and producing hot regions (intenseillumination) corresponding to the targeting pattern within the image.

Returning to FIG. 16, the decoder 506 of the barcode application 500 maycomprise known methods for image processing and decoding, includingmethods described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/717,112. Asdiscussed with respect to FIGS. 19A and 19B, if decoding isunsuccessful, then a new barcode image may need to be captured. This maybe done by returning to the image capture control methods 504 andselecting new image capture parameters. This process may be repeateduntil the barcode image has been successfully decoded, or until the usercancels further image capture and/or decoding attempts.

In general the data control methods 508 of the barcode application 500control what processes are performed on data decoded from the barcode142 (decoded data) within the target area 140. In more detail, and withreference to FIG. 1, in a first aspect the data control methods 508 mayfunction as a mobile client to a remote non-legacy system 22 whichsupports maintaining a Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol(TCP/IP) connection with mobile devices (such as mobile device 18) viathe network 12 for exchanging data with the mobile device 18 (includingreceiving decoded data from the mobile device 18) and controllingoperation of certain aspects of the barcode application 500.

In a second aspect, the data control methods 508 may function as amobile client to an intermediary device 24. The intermediary device 24supports maintaining a TCP/IP connection with mobile devices (such asmobile device 18) via the network 12 for receiving decoded data from themobile device 18. In turn the intermediary device may further supportproviding decoded data received from the mobile device 18 to a legacysystem 26 via a connection 15. This is useful when the legacy system 26is incapable of receiving decoded data directly from the mobile device18 via a TCP/IP connection and therefore the application 500 mayfunction independently of, and requires no compatibility with, thecommunication protocols and functions of the legacy system 26, includingthose used for communication between the legacy system 26 and theintermediary device 24. The intermediary device 24 may communicate withthe legacy system 26 via a connection 15, which may be a TCP/IPconnection separate from the TCP/IP connection through which the mobiledevice 18 communicates with the intermediary device 24.

FIGS. 20A-20B illustrate methods useful for an application for a barcodereading enhancement system. Referring to FIG. 20A, in operation, step502 represents that the data control methods 508 receive decoded imagedata from the decoder (or a separate barcode reader within the accessory20).

Decision block 504 represents determining if the received decoded datais intended for the legacy system 26 or the non-legacy system 22operating on the mobile device 18. The decision may be predetermined.For example, one application may be configured to operate as a mobileclient to the non-legacy system 22 (application 50 a for example) and assuch the method 508 may be configured to send the decoded data to thenon-legacy system 22 as part, and formatted as part, of the exchange ofdata between the non-legacy system 22 and the application 50 a in itsordinary course of operation.

As another example, another application may be configured to operate asa relay application (application 50 b for example) and as such themethod 508 may be configured to send the decoded data as plain text tothe intermediary device 24 (e.g. relay the decoded data directly to theintermediary device 24 without substantive processing by the application50 b).

If the received decoded data is intended for the legacy system 26, aheader may be added to the decoded data at step 506 and, at step 508,the decoded data may be packetized for TCP/IP transmittal to theintermediary device 24 as described above. At step 510 the packetizeddecoded data is sent to the intermediary device 24. As described above,upon receiving the decoded data, the intermediary device 24 transfersthe decoded data to the legacy system 26.

Alternatively, if the received decoded data is intended for thenon-legacy system 22, a header may be optionally added to the decodeddata at step 512 as described above. Step 514 represents formatting thedecoded data or otherwise processing the decode data within theapplication 50 a. Step 516 represents packetizing the formatted decodeddata for transmission to the non-legacy system 22 via TCP/IP and, atstep 518, the packetized formatted decoded data is sent to thenon-legacy system 22.

Referring to FIG. 20B, the intermediary device 24 may include a userinterface 522 such as a display and a keyboard, a network interface 524,a legacy system interface 526, a processor 520, and memory (i.e. anon-transient computer readable medium) 528 storing a legacy systemclient application 532 and a mobile application server 530.

The network interface 524 may include hardware and software componentsto implement a TCP/IP stack and a hard wired (e.g. Ethernet) or wirelessconnection to the network 12 to establish the TCP/IP connection with themobile device 18 and enable communication between the mobile applicationserver 530 and the corresponding client application 50 b operating onthe mobile device 18, including receiving decoded data from the clientapplication 50 b operating on the mobile device 18.

The legacy system interface 526 enables communication between the legacysystem client 532 and the legacy application (server) 538 operating onthe legacy system 26. The legacy system interface 526 may, in certainembodiments wherein communication between the intermediary device 24 andthe legacy system 26 is via TCP/IP, be the same component as networkinterface 524. In other embodiments the legacy system interface 526 mayimplement a proprietary communication link with a correspondingintermediary device interface 540 of the legacy system 26. It should benoted that even if TCP/IP is used for communication between theintermediary device 24 and the legacy system 26, the legacy system maystill not be accessible by the mobile device 18 via a TCP/IP connection.

In the exemplary embodiment, the processor 520 executing the legacysystem client 532 drives a work flow (e.g. a menu managed sequence oftext and/or graphic display forms displaying data and data entry fieldsfor user input of data) on the user interface 522 to facilitate a userperforming tasks within, for example, a healthcare, commercial, or otherwork environment. More specifically, the legacy application 538 mayprovide information regarding the tasks to the processor 520 operatingthe legacy system client 532 which renders the information to the useron the user interface 522. The user interface 522, under control of theprocessor 520 executing the legacy system client 532, may include dataentry fields for user input of data related to the tasks which aresubsequently sent to the legacy system 26.

In the exemplary embodiment, the processor 520 executing the mobileapplication server 530 operates in response to receiving decoded datafrom the client application 50 b operating on the mobile device 18 andprovides the decoded data to the legacy system client 532. Morespecifically, the processor 520 executing the mobile application server530 receives the decoded data from the mobile device 18 and places thedecoded data, in plain text form, within the data entry field at which acursor (not shown) is then currently positioned within the legacy systemclient 532. In certain embodiments, the mobile application server 530may add certain formatting to the plain text image data, such as addinga carriage return character, to automatically advance the cursor to anext data entry field upon entry of the decoded data.

The legacy system 26 may include an intermediary device interface 540, aprocessor 534, and memory (i.e. a non-transient computer readablemedium) 536 storing the legacy server application 538 executable by theprocessor 534.

In embodiments where the legacy system 26 communicates with theintermediary device 24 via TCP/IP the intermediary device interface 540may include hardware and software components to implement a TCP/IP stackand a hard wired (e.g. Ethernet) or wireless connection to a network toestablish a TCP/IP connection with the intermediary device 24. In otherembodiments the intermediary device interface 540 may implement aproprietary communication link with the legacy system interface 526 ofthe intermediary device 24.

The processor 534 executing the legacy system server application 538 mayexecute workflows that: i) drive the presentation of forms with fieldsvia the legacy system client 532 operating on the intermediary device 24(e.g. thick client/server architecture); and ii) store and manage datainput to the legacy system client 532, including both data input bykeyboard and decoded data input to the legacy system client 532 via themobile application server 530.

As discussed, the legacy system 26 is not capable of interfacingdirectly with an application 500 written for a mobile device 18 and isnot capable of receiving decoded data via a TCP/IP connection such asWI-FI directly from the mobile device 18. Rather, the legacy system 526may receive data via communication with the legacy system clientapplication 532 operating on the intermediary device 24 via a connection15.

The foregoing discussion describes various methods which may beimplemented in applications 50 operating on the mobile device 18. Itshould be appreciated that there may be multiple applications 50operating on the mobile device 18 and each of the multiple applications50 may utilize different permutations of the methods described. As anexample, one application may provide decoded data to a legacy system anda separate application may provide decoded data to a non-legacy system.

What is claimed is:
 1. A barcode reading system for a mobile device, themobile device comprising a camera for capturing an image of a field ofview, a microphone input connector, a memory and a processor forexecuting an operating system and applications stored in the memory, andthe barcode reading system comprising: a barcode reading enhancementaccessory secured to the mobile device, the barcode reading enhancementaccessory comprising: a user-activated barcode read control; andcircuitry for generating a barcode read signal on the microphone inputconnector of the mobile device in response to user activation of thebarcode read control; and a barcode reading application stored in thememory and executable by the processor, the barcode reading applicationincluding: an image capture and decode function for controlling thecamera to capture an image of a barcode within the field of view of thecamera and generating decoded data representing data encoded in thebarcode in response to the barcode read signal on the microphone inputconnector.
 2. The barcode reading system of claim 1, wherein: themicrophone input connector is embodied in a four-contact audio jack, thefour-contact audio jack comprising a ground contact, a left speakercontact, a right speaker contact and a microphone contact; the barcodereading enhancement accessory comprises a mating audio jack configuredto be inserted into the four-contact audio jack of the mobile devicewhen the barcode reading enhancement accessory is secured to the mobiledevice, and when inserted into the four-contact audio jack, the matingaudio jack comprises at least a ground contact coupled to the groundcontact of the four-contact audio jack and a microphone contact coupledto the microphone contact of the four-contact audio jack; and thebarcode reading enhancement accessory is configured to generate thebarcode read signal on the microphone input connector by at least oneof: generating a potential differential between the ground contact andthe microphone contact; or modifying a potential differential betweenthe ground contact and the microphone contact.
 3. The barcode readingsystem of claim 2 wherein: the barcode reading enhancement accessory isconfigured to generate the barcode read signal by generating a potentialdifferential between the ground contact and the microphone contact; andthe user-activated barcode read control is a mechanical control which,when activated, moves a magnetic field with respect to a conductor togenerate the potential differential.
 4. The barcode reading system ofclaim 3, wherein: the barcode reading enhancement accessory comprises agun-shaped case for the mobile device and includes a handle extendingdownward from a back side of the mobile device, the back side of themobile device being parallel to an upward-facing face side of the mobiledevice, the face side including a display screen; and the mechanicalcontrol is embodied as a trigger switch positioned where the handlemeets a portion of the case adjacent to the back side of the mobiledevice.
 5. The barcode reading system of claim 4, wherein: the camera ofthe mobile device has a field of view to the back side of the mobiledevice; and the barcode reading enhancement accessory further comprisesan optic system with a reflective surface for folding the field of viewof the camera towards a target area positioned at the top side of themobile device.
 6. The barcode reading system of claim 5, wherein: themobile device further includes a white light source for projecting afield of illumination towards the back side of the mobile device; andthe optic system further includes a reflective surface for folding thefield of illumination of the white light source towards the target area.7. The barcode reading system of claim 6, wherein the optic systemfurther includes a target-generating structure for modifying the fieldof illumination of the white light source to emit a targeting pattern ofillumination into the target area.
 8. The barcode reading system ofclaim 7, wherein the optic system further includes an illuminationfilter positioned within the field of illumination of the white lightsource for passing a portion of a spectrum of the illumination from thewhite light source, the targeting pattern being of a color correspondingto the portion of the spectrum passed by the illumination filter.
 9. Thebarcode reading system of claim 8, wherein the illumination filter is anarrow band filter for passing a narrow band of the spectrum andattenuating portions of the spectrum to each side of the narrow band.10. The barcode reading system of claim 8, wherein the optic systemfurther includes a camera filter positioned within the field of view ofthe camera for passing a portion of the spectrum of illuminationreflected from objects within the target area, the camera filterattenuating the portion of a spectrum passed by the illumination filter.11. The barcode reading system of claim 7, wherein the target-generatingstructure comprises an optical component for narrowing a field ofillumination of the white light source in at least one direction. 12.The barcode reading system of claim 11, wherein the target-generatingstructure is configured to narrow the field of illumination of the whitelight source to a divergence angle in the at least one direction that isapproximately the same as a divergence angle of the field of view of thecamera.
 13. The barcode reading system of claim 12, wherein thetarget-generating structure is further configured to narrow the field ofillumination of the white light source in a second direction, orthogonalto the first direction, to a divergence angle approximately the same asthe divergence angle of the field of view of the camera in the seconddirection.
 14. A method of reading a barcode utilizing a mobile device,the mobile device comprising a camera for capturing an image of a fieldof view, a microphone input connector, a memory and a processor forexecuting an operating system and applications stored in the memory, andthe method comprising: directing the operating system to obtain abarcode reading application from a remote application server and toinstall the barcode reading application in the memory for execution bythe processor; securing a barcode reading enhancement accessory to themobile device, the barcode reading enhancement accessory comprising: auser-activated barcode read control; and circuitry for generating abarcode read signal on the microphone input connector of the mobiledevice in response to user activation of the barcode read control; andexecuting the barcode reading application by the processor to capture animage of a barcode within the field of view and generate decoded datarepresenting data encoded in the barcode in response to the barcode readsignal on the microphone input connector.
 15. The method of claim 14,wherein: the microphone input connector is embodied in a four-contactaudio jack, the four-contact audio jack comprising a ground contact, aleft speaker contact, a right speaker contact and a microphone contact,the microphone input connector comprising the microphone contact; thebarcode reading enhancement accessory comprises a mating audio jackconfigured to be inserted into the four-contact audio jack of the mobiledevice when the barcode reading enhancement accessory is secured to themobile device, and when inserted into the four-contact audio jack, themating audio jack comprises at least a ground contact coupled to theground contact of the four-contact audio jack and a microphone contactcoupled to the microphone contact of the four-contact audio jack; andgenerating the barcode read signal on the microphone input connectorcomprises at least one of: generating a potential differential betweenthe ground contact and the microphone contact; or modifying a potentialdifferential between the ground contact and the microphone contact. 16.The method of claim 15 wherein: generating the barcode read signalcomprises generating a potential differential between the ground contactand the microphone contact; and the user-activated barcode read controlis a mechanical control which, when activated, moves a magnetic fieldwith respect to a conductor to generate the potential differential. 17.The method of claim 15, wherein: the barcode reading enhancementaccessory comprises a gun-shaped case for the mobile device and includesa handle extending downward from a back side of the mobile device, theback side of the mobile device being parallel to an upward-facing faceside of the mobile device, the face side including a display screen; andthe mechanical control is embodied as a trigger switch positioned wherethe handle meets a portion of the case adjacent to the back side of themobile device.
 18. The method of claim 17, wherein: the camera of themobile device has a field of view to the back side of the mobile device;and the barcode reading enhancement accessory further comprises an opticsystem with a reflective surface for folding the field of view of thecamera towards a target area positioned at a top side of the mobiledevice.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein: the mobile device furtherincludes a white light source projecting a field of illumination towardsthe back side of the mobile device; and the optic system furtherincludes a reflective surface for folding the field of illumination ofthe white light source towards the target area.
 20. The method of claim19, wherein the optic system further includes a target-generatingstructure for modifying the field of illumination of the white lightsource to emit a targeting pattern of illumination into the target area.21. The method of claim 20, wherein the optic system further includes anillumination filter positioned within the field of illumination of thewhite light source and for passing a portion of a spectrum of theillumination from the white light source, the targeting pattern being ofa color corresponding to the portion of the spectrum passed by theillumination filter.
 22. The method of claim 21, wherein theillumination filter is a narrow band filter for passing a narrow band ofthe spectrum and attenuating portions of the spectrum to each side ofthe narrow band.
 23. The method of claim 21, wherein the optic systemfurther includes a camera filter positioned within the field of view ofthe camera and passing only a portion of the spectrum of illuminationreflected from objects within the target area, the camera filterattenuating the portion of the spectrum passed by the illuminationfilter.
 24. The method of claim 20, wherein the target-generatingstructure comprises an optical component for narrowing a field ofillumination of the white light source in at least one direction. 25.The method of claim 24, wherein the target-generating structure isconfigured to narrow the field of illumination of the white light sourceto a divergence angle in the at least one direction that isapproximately the same as a divergence angle of the field of view of thecamera.
 26. The method of claim 25, wherein the target-generatingstructure is further configured to narrow the field of illumination ofthe white light source in a second direction, orthogonal to the firstdirection, to a divergence angle approximately the same as thedivergence angle of the field of view of the camera in the seconddirection.
 27. A barcode reading enhancement accessory secured to amobile device, the mobile device comprising a camera having a field ofview to a backside of the mobile device, a microphone input connector, amemory and a processor for executing an operating system and a barcoderead application stored in the memory, the barcode read applicationutilizing the camera to capture an image of, and decode, a barcode andthe barcode reading enhancement accessory comprising: a user-activatedbarcode read control; and circuitry for generating a barcode read signalon the microphone input connector of the mobile device in response touser activation of the barcode read control.
 28. The barcode readingenhancement accessory of claim 27, wherein: the microphone inputconnector is embodied in a four-contact audio jack, the four-contactaudio jack comprising a ground contact, a left speaker contact, a rightspeaker contact and a microphone contact; the barcode readingenhancement accessory comprises a mating audio jack configured to beinserted into the four-contact audio jack of the mobile device when thebarcode reading enhancement accessory is secured to the mobile device,and when inserted into the four-contact audio jack, the mating audiojack comprises at least a ground contact coupled to the ground contactof the four-contact audio jack and a microphone contact coupled to themicrophone contact of the four-contact audio jack; and the barcodereading enhancement accessory is configured to generate the barcode readsignal on the microphone input connector by at least one of: generatinga potential differential between the ground contact and the microphonecontact; or modifying a potential differential between the groundcontact and the microphone contact.
 29. The barcode reading enhancementaccessory of claim 28 wherein: the user-activated barcode read controlis a mechanical control which, when activated, moves a magnetic fieldwith respect to a conductor to generate the potential differential. 30.The barcode reading enhancement accessory of claim 29, comprising: agun-shaped case for the mobile device; and a handle extending downwardfrom a back side of the mobile device, the back side of the mobiledevice being parallel to an upward-facing face side of the mobiledevice, the face side including a display screen, wherein the mechanicalcontrol is embodied as a trigger switch positioned where the handlemeets a portion of the case adjacent to the back side of the mobiledevice.
 31. The barcode reading enhancement accessory of claim 30,wherein: the camera of the mobile device has a field of view to the backside of the mobile device; and the barcode reading enhancement accessoryfurther comprises an optic system with a reflective surface for foldingthe field of view of the camera towards a target area positioned at thetop side of the mobile device.
 32. The barcode reading enhancementaccessory of claim 31, wherein: the mobile device further includes awhite light source for projecting a field of illumination towards theback side of the mobile device; and the optic system further includes areflective surface for folding the field of illumination of the whitelight source towards the target area.
 33. The barcode readingenhancement accessory of claim 32, wherein the optic system furtherincludes a target-generating structure for modifying the field ofillumination of the white light source to emit a targeting pattern ofillumination into the target area.
 34. The barcode reading enhancementaccessory of claim 33, wherein the optic system further includes anillumination filter positioned within the field of illumination of thewhite light source for passing a portion of a spectrum of theillumination from the white light source, the targeting pattern being ofa color corresponding to the portion of the spectrum passed by theillumination filter.
 35. The barcode reading enhancement accessory ofclaim 34, wherein the illumination filter is a narrow band filter forpassing a narrow band of the spectrum and attenuating portions of thespectrum to each side of the narrow band.
 36. The barcode readingenhancement accessory of claim 34, wherein the optic system furtherincludes a camera filter positioned within the field of view of thecamera for passing a portion of the spectrum of illumination reflectedfrom objects within the target area, the camera filter attenuating theportion of a spectrum passed by the illumination filter.
 37. The barcodereading enhancement accessory of claim 33, wherein the target-generatingstructure comprises an optical component for narrowing a field ofillumination of the white light source in at least one direction. 38.The barcode reading enhancement accessory of claim 37, wherein thetarget-generating structure is configured to narrow the field ofillumination of the white light source to a divergence angle in the atleast one direction that is approximately the same as a divergence angleof the field of view of the camera.
 39. The barcode reading enhancementaccessory of claim 38, wherein the target-generating structure isfurther configured to narrow the field of illumination of the whitelight source in a second direction, orthogonal to the first direction,to a divergence angle approximately the same as the divergence angle ofthe field of view of the camera in the second direction.